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I guess I'm doubting that he would file a grievance over those 6 or 7 games unless the players union strongly urges him .

No middle infielder nor 3rd baseman hit well in ST. The only one was Cuthbert and he looked terrible in the field.

Most people are under the assumption that starters will start the year going 3 or 4 innings. So when you say starters are averaging 5 innings per start now it doesn't apply to the now. There is no now. Pitchers will be starting coming off a long delay to the start of the season and some had not pitched at all in a spring training games. Lucas Giolito and Kopech pitched 1 inning in ST Keuchel pitched 7.2 innings in 2 starts Rodon, Gio Gonzalez , DunnIng and Lambert all 0 innings Cease 3 starts 9.1 innings pitched Lopez 2 starts 7.1 innings pitched Among the RH relievers to pitch in ST Fulmer had the most innings 9.2 and actually looked pretty good. Among the others from the 40 none had more than 5.2 innings. Burdi had 4 innings and looked pretty good and I think he was not even invited to summer camp. Hoping he isn't experiencing pain but why not have him invited otherwise ? Maybe too many RH relievers to invite him. LH relievers: We only had 2 who from the 40 appeared in ST games and that was Bummer and Flores . All others who appeared in games were Non Roster Invitees. Among the hitters who looked best in ST. Collins , Mercedes, Vaughn, Engel, Robert, Mazara with more than 20 AB. Cuthbert was the only guy among 2B, 3B and SS who looked good in ST but he also had a few errors.

So what are the rules in extra innings starting with a runner on 2nd ? Can it be anyone or is there a rule specifying who it should be ? A very fast guy could be of great benefit on 2nd base in extra innings. If someone knocks him in with a double another runner on 2nd 3rd with with none or 1 out could also have a pinch runner.

Thanks fellas.

More than likely. He was contemplating retirement anyway so Covid just helped him make up his mind.

Plus the teams he could've been traded to got cut in half once it was decided that DH would still only be in the AL for the abbreviated season.

Yes as you know I was against it for a full season for various reasons. But now in such a short season pure talent is pretty much all that matters.

Just so you know I won;t be shoving it in anyone's face. I will be happy if he succeeds and disappointed if he doesn't which in most scenarios is the more likely outcome. Personally I saw no need for EE but i understood his signing because he is a well established bat and Yermin and Collins are not. In a year the Sox planned to compete that was most important rather then Collins, Yermin and others sharing the DH spot.

Just so you know I was maybe the 1st one on Soxtalk to start inquiring about him back when he was languishing in A ball and i noticed he never had a bad season in the minors and started a thread in Future Sox for anyone who could tell me more about him . After he moved up and started hitting even better through AA and AAA i was going about questioning how come he couldn't be included in our Top 30 even though i knew the obvious answers about his age and defense. But hitting alone can some times get you to where you want to be.

You never know the Sox could do what the Mets just did and sign some more MLB talent from the free agents who went unsigned. Also good to see Dunning ,Rodon and Lambert among the previously TJ'd on the list.

A day after announcing their initial player pool for the start of summer camp later this week, the Mets on Monday supplemented it with a quintet of signings. Three of them -- reliever Hunter Strickland, infielder Gordon Beckham and outfielder Melky Cabrera -- came from outside the organization. The other two -- pitcher Erasmo Ramirez and outfielder Ryan Cordell -- came from within. All five are part of the Mets’ 60-man player pool scheduled to begin working out at Citi Field on Friday. 3 ex Sox Melky, Beckham and Cordell. I was only half joking the other day when I said sign Puig. Looks like they Mets are supplementing their 60 to include some veteran MLB talent also. 1st paragraph taken from MLB.com

You will not like this prediction. No Yermin ! So no Yermin now !? I'll just imagine you just made it a Top 5.

You definitely have the right attitude on this. In the end economic recovery is more important than peoples lives. What these governments fail to realize is that true economic recovery can't occur until people can move about again without fear. Short sightedness is the true enemy. Compare Covid to the story line in Jaws. The mayor and city council pressured the M.E. to change the cause of death of the 1st victim from shark attack to boating accident. Then they caught a shark and yay problem solved all for the sake of economics because it was tourist season. Very short sighted and foolish thinking and as we watch Jaws we all realized that. Covid is Jaws. It's Jurassic Park. It might not be as obvious or frightening to us as a Great White Shark or T-Rex but the devastation is just as tragic.

Glad you mentioned the Parrot trot.While I and most would give the obvious answers of Robert and the majority of young guys, the off season additions of Encarnacon Keuchel and especially Grandal will be huge , Too bad Hawk can't be around to tout the talents of the new Yaz.

I'd personally make that 3 or 4 years. Even in that time period there might not be any visual physical changes. He should be strong but flexible. While strength is important , we don't have to see him bulk up . Increase core strength and conditioning, flexibility. Everything branches from the core. Without essential core strength you may develop bad habits in other strength training . Violent motions such as pitching need a stable core to maintain balance and consistency /repeatability of motions. These exercises and conditioning programs are things that are not temporary. They should be done over a lifetime . They should be as ingrained as showering and brushing/flossing your teeth.

Really good podcast. Very impressed with Crochet . Very well spoken kid, Some things I found interesting. He had a growth spurt between freshman and sophomore year of college. He said he went from 6'3" 180 lbs. to 6'5" 215. He really hasn't pitched all that much with his current body. The mystery of his changeup and why reports may differ about it, He really never used it. He would have featured it more this year but obviously that never got a chance to play out. He seems to think it got much better. He said sophomore year It wasn't that good of a pitch, just something to throw over the plate to keep hitters off balance. He said the development of the changeup is what makes him see himself as a future starter. He said now it has good fade and good 2 seam action to it. He may just be starting to tap into his full potential. He basically has a newer body and better changeup and hasn't had much of a chance to use either very much yet.

Only you can turn something good into something stupid . Bossards kid isn't going to take the spot of a better player away. Get real . Didn't you say "he couldn't play dead in a cowboy movie". If your assessment of his talent is correct how is it possible to take a better players spot ? There is open competition on the field. He signed for a measly amount . Do you think his talent or whatever he signed for will cost the Sox some future superstar who couldve been signed for $20K if it wasnt for the Sox signing Bossard ? Jerry does something magnanimous and you turn it into a fight like most of us argued about signing Abreu costing the Sox talent down the road.. I am not the stupid one here . If you reply I am done regardless It's such an insignificant thing arguing about some gesture of goodwill costing the Sox any talent. It just won't because it's a pittance and if he is as talentless as you say he won't cost anyone spot in open competition either. Can you even imagine yourself saying a few years from now if any of these 20K signees turns into a quality major league player "see f it wasn't for the Sox signing Bossard the Sox could've had that guy" . I don't think so.

You don't even know the amount of money he was signed for so don't make stupid statements. The Sox are going to sign who they want to sign . SIgning one to an unknown amount won't stop them from giving better players $20K. You think someone in the front office is going to say "wait we cant sign this guy , we gave Bossard all the money".

Maybe the signing was Jerry's way of giving the Bossards a reward for his many years of service. Roger Bossard might be the longest tenured member of the White Sox family, He's been working for the Sox in some capacity for over 50 years and he is probably the most recognizable and famous name in his profession. It was a nice gesture . The amount might never be known. Jerry is pretty loyal . I'm sure his employees are taken better care of than most teams'.

As the season goes along and some players get Covid maybe some teams will value a replacement for sick players much higher. Of course they also my not given that if they think a season can't be finished why even bother. This is totally unlike any season anyone has witnessed before. Throw every statement that you would make in a normal season out the window. We don't yet know who from the Phil and Jays has it . If we keep getting reports like that the season might not even start.

Imagine getting a walkoff hit to win a game, a playoff game or the World Series. Players are going to have to break some ingrained habits of camaraderie. No mob scenes at home plate allowed . no players doing silly hand shakes, no high or low fives rounding the bases. No everyone gathering on the pitching mound . You could go on and on.

Probably will need to cordon off a whole section and put a cage around it. If there are fans there will always be idiots who might spit on players or think they are funny doing fake sneezes and coughs at them or even spitting on them from above. I would imagine no autographs for those hounds too. Forget it no fans should be allowed.

I think I know where you are coming from. What exactly are the odds of even finishing a season and crowning a World Champ ? Is it 50/50 ? What does everyone think ? If there is no World Series it does make sense to rid yourself of guys you aren't going to have next year especially if you start the season poorly such as 7 or more games under .500 after 20-25 games. Too short of a season to expect to make up ground. Trouble is you have to play to win. We all wanted to see the off season acquisitions Grandal, Keuchel .Mazara, Cishek, Encarnacion and Gio Gonzalez, combine with our prospects like Kopech. Robert and Madrigal ,combine with guys on the rise (or not) like Anderson, Giolito, Lopez, Cease, Moncada and Eloy. This season was going to be wonderful to behold if it had been normal. Now will be still fun because guys like Dunning and Rodon might pitch from the start of the season. Play for the trophy if you are going to play.Besides there's no guarantee that 2021 is going to be any better .

Someone will always be in a slump . You play the best you got and hope for the best. That's what I would do In a short season. What would constitute a slump anyway ? If someone goes 0 for 10 or 15 they get benched ? The Sox didnt get the services of Encarnacion or Mazara to sit them. Just play match ups as best you can and do more pinch hitting according to match ups especially in situations where pitchers are forced to face hitters. The majority of Sox starters will be playing no matter who they face. Just about every position has some decent to good power except 2nd base. Some bombs come in real handy in late innings when you might be behind. If someone in the 3 hole starts slow you could move him down in the lineup rather than bench him. I might never take Robert out of the lineup even if he is struggling. There's no way I rather see Engel in CF or in the lineup over Robert. Sign Yasiel Puig !