Jake

Marty, you have to take into consideration how the trade market is different in the middle of a season. Most teams that anticipate contending will more or less be maxed out in terms of payroll when they begin a season. It will be very difficult for them to add a $10-15 million player with such little notice. In the offseason, many more teams have flexibility to add players that are making some money. Hence, free agency. People spend money there. Our players (Alexei and Rios) will cost less in dollars than comparable free agents. When teams are turned off by free agents, lack the money to sign them, or can't find the right one (there will be no FA shortstops of Alexei's caliber)...they can turn to the White Sox. We can kick in a little if need be to increase the savings and they will pay up in talent to make it worth our while. The right trade partner will be somebody like has been already mentioned, a promising young guy who is clearly blocked in the short term.

I wonder if people will have done their homework enough to think Frank didn't juice. Just looking at his size, the uninformed would think he is just another poster boy of the steroid era. I hope more than the Chicago media and fans will know the whole story.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 08:36 PM) I hate this. Sorry but I don't like the stigma that a corner outfielder or first baseman has to have a certain amount home runs or power. Viciedo has power. If he can hit the ball that is all that matters. Hitting with RISP is more important then how many home runs he will get. Viciedo will consistently put up at least 15 home runs in a full season, closer to 20 I think. If he can do that and hit better then .270 I would be fine with that. Why does a 3B, 1B, RF, and LF have to have a certain amount of power?? We need players who get on base and can knock people in who are on base. Look at the Cardinals. Allen Craig has 11 home runs this year, a lot of power? Nope, but he gets hits. That is all we need. I don't think we believe has to have power so much as he has to be a productive hitter...which will require him to hit with power. Also, power normally requires size. Size tends to keep you from playing spots like SS/2B/CF. So you want the guys who aren't good enough athletes to play those positions to at least have the skill of hitting for power.

As far as seeing young guys, you can be relieved to know that Charlotte will not be making the playoffs all the AAA guys should be ready in September.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 08:39 PM) How has Carlos Sanchez looked in his AB's Hits everything hard, but also not in a way that makes it look like he could get XBH. Hard liners but nothing with the kind of loft that makes you think it would leave the yard or split a gap.

Ishikawa grounds to pitcher, Sanchez gets in a pickle between home and third, eventually gets out. Avisail should have moved up to third on the play but stayed on second.

Avisail swung his way into an 0-2 count, took two balls to get to 2-2. He then takes a backdoor slider from the LHP that looked like a strike but was not called. May have been outside. Fouled off two borderline pitches on 3-2 before ripping a single through the left side on a low strike. Sanchez was running on the play and used his speed to take third, from first on the single to left.

Semien K's on a very good slider that ran in from a lefty.

Semien commits error. Weird hop...makes me wonder if there's something with the field that has caused the SS's trouble

No thanks to Iglesias. I was texting with my dad and as the trade was developing and when I thought we were getting Iglesias, he asked if Iglesias would be the centerpiece. I said no, there's no way we'd accept him as the top piece. I was right.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 07:51 PM) On the upper right side of the phone? It's pretty much impossible to accidentally press it. I've never had an issue with it and the last 4 phones I've owned had it on the side. That's right where I put my finger! lol

QUOTE (flavum @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 07:52 PM) Giddy up. Is Semien forcing errors with his speed, or just bad defense? Neither one drew a throw. This recent one, which was hit hard and went off the SS's wrist, ricocheted right to the LF and he still took second on the play. QUOTE (fathom @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 07:52 PM) He has big time opposite field power right now Indeed. That was impressive.

Home run Avisail! Took a fastball way, way over the right field fence.

Semien reaches on an error by the shortstop for the second time today. This one was well-hit. It was a very good at-bat, what I am seeing from him is pitchers constantly try to get him to bite on sliders away and he isn't biting on it.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 07:38 PM) Eh not really, sometimes I guess. But how hard is it to learn the new location of a random button? I just don't get the big complaint. I don't get it either, I was just saying QUOTE (chw42 @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 07:39 PM) For a long phone like the HTC One, it should really be on the side of the phone. It's easier for everyone to press it. I don't like the idea of it being on the side. Very easy to accidentally press.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 07:36 PM) Gotta agree with you on this point...how often do people actually use their damned power buttons. I reboot my phone maybe once a month, and it's the only thing I use the power button for. You don't use it to lock it?

QUOTE (fathom @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 07:26 PM) From what was being reported, Alexei and Rios had very little value at the deadline. At the deadline, you have a very narrow market of suitors for most position players. The market is even narrower for guys making any money at mid-season. You have to hold on to these guys into the offseason at the least, where there are many more teams that feel they are about to compete and many more teams that are able to take on salary. Personally, I think there ought to be some sense of urgency to move Rios in the offseason, though again I'm not going to get nothing for him. With Alexei, since you more or less have an opening at third, I'd prefer to give Semien a trial at third. This gives you a chance to evaluate his bat at the big league level before you part ways with Alexei who is going to be difficult to replace if Semien cannot do it.

QUOTE (fathom @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 07:15 PM) Anything of interest from his 3 at bats? Not really. Had a deep fly out on a very off balance swing, so I was surprised at his power. He looks like he knows the strike zone really well, which is unsurprising.

QUOTE (flavum @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 07:16 PM) If a team wanted to pick up Alexei off waivers, and the Sox got nothing back, I'd be happy with that. Get this kid up and bring some new energy. No. Let him play 3B and hold on to the very valuable asset that is Alexei. We have nothing to gain by cutting payroll. We'll be in the bottom third of the league in payroll next year and if we lost one of our pricey vets, we'd be in the bottom 3-4 teams. Don't dump Alexei, the player who ranks highest on our team in WAR compared to others in the league at his position, just to save a few bucks. Somebody would take him, especially if we threw a few bucks in, for talent that can help us. I don't know why this board is obsessed with bringing up new guys to replace our best players without getting anything of value from the loss of those best players.

Another great play from Semien, ranging over the middle and making a tough throw on the run

Aforementioned play by Semien was with 1 out, men on the corners. hard ground ball towards the middle, he takes a couple steps and dives, catching the ball at full extension. On his stomach, he glove flips to Carlos Sanchez who finishes the DP

Semien just made a RIDICULOUS play, wow

QUOTE (GreenSox @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 05:35 PM) No way. The other team loses the value of the veterans in the key 2 months of the season. We still should be able to move some of these guys along, but we won't get the same deal our way. That's assuming it was for veterans, and not for Sale, Quintanta, etc. Well it's just tough to say. Team X may still see position Y as a position of need heading into next year and would rather bark up our tree where we can provide discounts on already below-market contracts in exchange for their young guys/prospects that they deem expendable.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 03:29 PM) I was thinking this thread was about a permanent move starting next season. I'm all for doing it for the rest of this season. Well I don't know what they are thinking, but if they're practicing him there now I assume they'd like to at least start playing him there now. I don't see why they can't or wouldn't move him back to LF when/if we move Rios, though. Dayan isn't a good LF, but the stats tell us that he's not SO bad that he can't play out there. He's not far below replacement level defense as an OF and honestly it is possible that he costs us more runs as a 1B. I think/hope Hahn knows this.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Aug 2, 2013 -> 05:25 PM) Stone speculated about Dunn and Texas afterward. Not that that deal was available but just speculation. Stone also hammered the team and management pretty hard. He mentioned all of the moved that other teams made and then said when you add "Keppinger and Lindstrom" that isn't exactly getting it done. Yikes. We did the right thing. We played it carefully, knowing that it was likely or possible that last year may not be repeated - so we left ourself in a position where we could still blow it up. Our payroll situation is absolutely fantastic and you can thank Rick for that since he didn't blow his wad on free agents.