sircaffey

I think it would be a huge mistake to give any long-term deal to Joe Crede early in the year. Back problems have a tendency to linger. You may see Joe play healthy for a couple months then either be out for an extended period of time or in and out of the lineup all season. Is Crede that necessary to this team to risk any long term deal on? Age 30, missed almost a full season, serious back issues, entering declining years...Play Josh at 3B, spend the money on an OF.

KW better make it clear to Oz that the person that earns the position gets the nod. Not another, "Whoever performs the best wins it" type deal, only to go with the struggling washed up vet.

QUOTE(elrockinMT @ Oct 27, 2007 -> 12:48 PM) Sign Joe before the season starts. Fields is not the 3B person we need to make a run at a championship. It is Joe Crede. Josh needs grooming out there in LF. He can play an occassional game at 3B along with Ozuna though. One question I have though - does anyone think Fieds could make the transformation at 2B or SS? Did he ever play there? Your love affair with Crede is quite evident. Regarding Fields, have you gone mad?

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Oct 25, 2007 -> 03:41 PM) In no particular order, I'll take Albert Pujols Alex Rodriguez Miguel Cabrera Curtis Granderson Vlad Guerrero Joe Mauer Victor Martinez Mark Teixeira Hanley Ramirez Prince Fielder Chase Utley Ryan Howard David Wright Grady Sizemore Matt Holliday over Carl Crawford without even the thought of a second thought. Carl Crawford is not an impact player, and he is not a guy you build a team around. He steals a lot of bases, hits about .310, and doesn't put up much power. Top 10 leadoff hitter, possible top 50 hitter in the game. Not that I disagree, but personally I'd rather have Crawford over Victor Martinez. If we are just talking about impact, I think Crawford impacts the game much more than Victor given that Crawford does a lot of things Victor can't.

QUOTE(Steve9347 @ Oct 24, 2007 -> 10:52 AM) Alright, I've had enough of this. I wanted Tyrus in the 2006 NBA Draft, I got Tyrus in the 2006 NBA Draft. The Bulls took LaMarcus Aldridge, everyone's concensus breakout player for 2007-08, and traded him for Tyrus and the ever-unstoppable Victor "they used to call me Dalibor" Khryapa. Tyrus has all the athleticism in the world, but get this... he can't even beat out a guy who was picked 49th overall just a few months ago. Tyrus went 4th overall (to the team with the 2nd pick). It's been a year. He should be blowing Aaron Gray away (and to a lesser extent Joakim Noah), and he's not. Why is this? It sounds like its his dedication and his being unwilling to show up for practices in the offseason and to take an active part in improving his game. Yeah, he can still score, rebound, and block. But he makes the dumb plays that make him look like he just left high school still, and it's starting to piss me off. If he were anywhere near the talent that LaMarcus Aldridge is right now, we'd have our PF spot locked up and the best starting lineup in the league. But no. We have a cycling band of players, two who play their asses off without the great talent in Noah and Gray, and one who just doesn't care who could own this town if he'd just give a damn in Tyrus. Don't get me wrong, when Tyrus is throwing down slam dunks and blocking shots, I love it, but the fact the he can't impress the coaches enough to get the majority of the minutes at power forward this season is a joke, and tyrus is a joke because of that. Your expectations for Tyrus are way too high for this season. If this post was made a year from now, then you might be on to something.

Something tells me the Red Sox aren't really regretting signing Dice-K. They seem to be just fine. Plus, he's not on the Yankees.

QUOTE(rockren @ Oct 23, 2007 -> 12:08 AM) We'd get a guy similar to a Floyd to compete for a rotation spot. A guy like Nippert or Owings (long shot on him) with that Pena from the DBacks would do the trick. KW will look for a similar deal compared to last year- a few promising but failed young arms from an organization in return for Garland. As far as Egbert making the big league roster next year....I'd say that's out of the question, even though he'll get a chance in Spring. I like Egbert, but I'd feel a little better if he could show he's capable of throwing a sub 4 ERA in AAA for a bit. Why trade for another project SP? A trade of Garland should bring back 2-3 quality guys that could fill holes either now or for an extended period of time down the road. We don't need a fringe SP. That'd just be a waste of a trade IMO. I'd much rather get one of AZ high quality OF prospects than Nippert, that's for damn sure.

QUOTE(WCSox @ Oct 19, 2007 -> 12:20 PM) I'd be fine with the Sox paying A-Rod $30 million/year IF it's only a three-year-deal. And we all know that isn't going to happen. I don't think that he'll get $300 million in guaranteed money, but I'm sure that he won't settle for less than $150 million. The problem with that from a business standpoint, is that you aren't getting the meat of the return on investment within 3 years. The most money that Arod will produce for your team will come in years 5+ when he's approaching multiple records. From a pure baseball production standpoint, a 3 year deal makes the most sense, but to JR that's probably not the case. It has probably crossed JR's mind that he brought the greatest basketball player to ever live to Chicago, and now he has the chance to bring in and keep probably the greatest baseball player to ever live to Chicago. Reinsdorf would be a god in this city. Whether it all makes sense to us is a different story, but there are issues past the bottom line on a signing like this one. I'm definitely not saying it will happen, but I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss it.

The Dodgers have what every team wants. They aren't going to just jump at anything that may make them better. If the Dodgers opened up their piggy bank, there would be multiple SP that would suddenly become available. No reason to jump at Jon Garland.

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Oct 17, 2007 -> 07:01 PM) 1998 - Tony Phillips and Frank Thomas. They almost had 4 actually, as Baines put up .399 in 572 PAs and Dave Martinez put up .393 in 498 PAs. I suppose you mean 1996. Wouldn't mind resurrecting some of that offense next season.

QUOTE(jackie hayes @ Oct 17, 2007 -> 05:35 PM) Tejada's bat hasn't slipped all that much. He never put up a very consistent line. Around that MVP year he put up .475 slg, this year he put up a .444 slg. Okay, that's not nothing, but it's not a pattern. (His obp isn't out of line with his career.) Remember, he's going to be 32 next year -- some fall-off should be expected now. You can't really fault him on the counting stats. The injury really affects those, and remember, he's on the Orioles. And he broke a bone when he was hit by a pitch. It's a freak injury that could happen to anyone. I wouldn't call that "breaking down". Especially when he came back to have his best month of the season. The bigger concern is his fielding. There's been some talk in Baltimore about moving Mora to lf and shifting Tejada to 3b. And it's not like Baltimore has a hot shot prospect pushing him -- he's just slowed down so much that he's become a liability. But his bat is still good enough that he'll be expensive. They won't dump him for Contreras + rejects. Bedard is not gonna happen. They'll want young players, much better than any we have. Well, his SLG has dropped in each of the last 4 seasons (.534-.515-.498-.442). That's the only thing that's consistent really. His OBP and AVE jump around. He'll always be a good hitter, but probably isn't a middle of the order type anymore or for much longer.

QUOTE(joeynach @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 12:52 PM) Why add another all or nothing low batting average hitter. The sox have been trying to shy away from that type of guy with the whole grinder thing. The sox have the big boys in Thome, Konerko Dye, AJ, Crede, and Fields who all have the ability to hit for power with no batting avg or no situational hitting. I dont see how adding Burell helps round out the lineup around these guys. I believe KW has made it clear he wants more speed and smarter situational hitters to fill in this lineup. With Richar in place look more for like Shannon Stewart or possibly even Miguel Tejada to be on the radar list before Burell. I would trade for Victorino though. Thome's the only guy on that list that's a sure fire .360+ OBP. I'd like to think Pauly and Jermaine can get back up there, but at this point in their careers and the seasons they just had, we don't know. A.J., Joe, and Josh aren't even safe bets to eclipse the .300 OBP mark (add Richar into that and it becomes an even bigger issue). There's a definite problem with getting on base with this team. If you can't get on base you can't score. It doesn't matter how much speed you have in your lineup or how smart you are in certain situations. Just wondering, but when was the last time the Sox had two .400 OBPs in the same season? Belle and Thomas was what I would have thought, but even they didn't do it.

QUOTE(Chombi and the Fungi @ Oct 17, 2007 -> 04:36 PM) I dont think I want Tejada. Part does, part doesnt. Him in our lineup/ballpark gets me excited but...then his regression doesnt. I am not going to pull up the sabermetrics numbers or any right now cuz I am leaving for class. I'll let someone else do it. I am positive his regular baseball numbers have slipped. Outside of his OBP and OPS. Someone can check the other stuff but I know he hasn't scored 100 runs, knocked in 100 maybe once and he hasn't been slugging real well. I looked at his numbers midseason so I hope this is accurate. Regardless, his numbers are slipping a little. He broke down this year for the first time in his career. He just isn't the same guy that was a MVP candidate in the early 2000's. I mentioned something about this in another thread. Baltimore's media had a couple articles and rumors about dealing Bedard. If there is any truth to it, I'd much rather go for him at whatever cost then I would Tejada. Actually, his OPS is dropping. Not as a product of his OBP, but his SLG is decreasing. He's probably not a .860+ OPS hitter like he has been in the past, but I could see Miguel at .300/.350/.450 at least for the remainder of his current contract (3 yrs). At ~$14 million per year, some money should be sent our way unless we are dumping Contreras in a Tejada deal.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Oct 15, 2007 -> 03:46 PM) With the depth we have at SP, that'd be a fairly stupid position to lock yourself into. Well..."depth" as in quantity. Quality still remains in question.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Oct 14, 2007 -> 09:02 PM) We already have at least a decent looking young 2nd baseman. We don't have a spot for Kendrick. At least give me someone who looks like they belong at SS, don't give me someone we have to move there. I don't think it matters. I doubt the Angels move Kendrick for anything we are willing to offer. Although, if attainable, I would grab him in a heartbeat and worry about what to do with Richar later. Howie can flat out hit.

QUOTE(GreatScott82 @ Oct 13, 2007 -> 02:51 PM) come on, did they really win the division because of iguchi or was it the infamous collapse of the Mets? Gooch did help them for a couple weeks before Utley returned i give you that. Im guessing KW felt bad about the Garcia disaster so he would help his friend out by giving them Gooch. THis team needs speed not another bopper. So if we trade Crede i hope it will be for a speedy guy. Crede for Figgins would be wonderful! That trade almost happened last year while Crede came off his best year, now it might be a stretch, but i know the Angels are hungry for another power hitter and a 3B, maybe they take a chance on Crede? What we need is OBP, better performance vs LHP, and some speed. Burrell kills the first two. If KW wants speed he'll get it from CF or SS. You don't get it from LF.

QUOTE(elrockinMT @ Oct 13, 2007 -> 01:59 PM) If the back problem is a concern for us then you can bet it is a concern for the Phils. He is reported to be healthy and feeling real good and will be ready for ST. We keep Joe and his gold glove and his continually improving hitting at 3B and develop Fields, who shows power but strikes out a lot, in LF. That's what makes sense to me. Joe Crede is still young and will be healthy again. Fields is taking the same development path as Crede is many ways. First off, this is major surgery. This isn't some small nagging injury where minor surgery is guaranteed to be near 100% successful. Second, this is back surgery. There is no worse area to have screwed up for a hitter. Lastly, he missed almost an entire season. It's hard enough for any player to pick right up after that much time away from the game. Now toss in major back surgery. To assume that Crede is back to 100% playing at his '06 level is extremely presumptuous. Joe will be 30 at the start of next season. Not exactly "young." These are supposed to be Crede's prime years. Now he has major back surgery to work through to regain his skills. The future does not look very good for Joe.

QUOTE(Kalapse @ Oct 12, 2007 -> 10:57 AM) I'd add Oswalt to that list as well. Representing the oldies but goodies, John Smoltz.

QUOTE(GreatScott82 @ Oct 12, 2007 -> 06:35 PM) Lets stay away from trading with the Phils for awhile and try a new team. Whats the point of trading for a guy who will add more to the payroll? If Crede is healthy and that is a big IF, he can definitley match the offensive #s of Burrell. Save that money, put Fields out in left. The first move i would do is trade either Garland or Contreras for some bullpen and/or a SS or possibly even some solid prospects. THe second thing i would do is sign that new CF. However, i wouldn't be surprised to see Crede go this offseason as he is going into his contract season and Fields is waiting... A Garland-Crede package could bring back some good stuff... Okay i really have no clue WTH KW will do... When does Hot Stove start? Did you seriously just say that Crede could match the numbers of Burrell? I just want to make sure I read that correctly.

QUOTE(WHITESOXRANDY @ Oct 11, 2007 -> 11:08 AM) I still disagree. Giving up Rowand and Gio to get a player that cost more money and gives you the same production as a player you already have is a bad move. And, getting nothing for that player is a worse move. This is killing the Sox - got nothing for Ordonez, nothing for Thomas and will probably get nothing for Crede. They can't keep letting their best players go for no return and they also need to sign more free agents. They need to trade some of these guys for good young talent while they can. They have so few quality young guys that can step in and produce. You can't win consistently producing nothing from the farm system and not signing free agents. The talent has to come from somewhere. I think that logic really only applies to SP. You can let expensive offensive players go because there is always an offensive player you can acquire/sign. Especially at those positions (CO, DH). The Sox have shown a willingness to sign a few free agent hitters. Now, had the Sox done the same logic with Buehrle and just let him walk without getting anything in return, that would have been a huge problem since the Sox rarely or never bid on free agent SP. If this is their philosophy, then trading Garland now is the move to make. But letting Ordonez, Thomas, and eventually Crede all walk really doesn't hurt that much (also considering they all had/have injury problems at the time they were let go).

Hypothetical situation... Say that some kind of Contreras for Furcal swap is doable. Would you be interested in a Konerko/Garland for Kotchman, Santana, and Shields + B level prospect deal? I'm not really in favor of giving a contract to either Rowand or Hunter, but you'd have the cash to do so, and probably would be the end result if this situation were to occur. 1. Furcal, SS 2. Rowand, CF 3. Thome, DH 4. Dye, RF 5. Kotchman, 1B 6. Fields, LF 7. Crede, 3B 8. Pierzynski, C 9. Richar, 2B 1. Buehrle, LHP 2. Vazquez, RHP 3. Santana, RHP 4. Danks, LHP 5. Floyd/Gio/Haeger CL -Jenks SUvRH -Shields SUvLH -Thornton MR -MacDougal MR -Logan MR -Wassermann LR -Haeger Would this be something that would be ok with you?

QUOTE(beck72 @ Oct 11, 2007 -> 04:53 AM) I'd rather have Shields than Santana. Mostly because he's what the sox need from a bullpen guy. Santana may not be better than Floyd or Danks. And he's unproven for the bullpen. IIRC, Santana's a FB pitcher, too. The deal for PK and Garland would have to include a very solid minor league arm--maybe someone in AA from the Angels. You can't seriously want an aging Shields over Santana. He's just coming off a bad year for whatever reason. The guy has filthy filthy stuff. For what it's worth, Ervin was 2-2 with a 2.96 ERA (6 G, 4 GS) in September and October (27.1 IP, 22 H, 13 BB, 30 SO). If you take on Shields instead of Santana, you are pretty much forced to keep Contreras. If you get Santana, you'd be able to move Contreras in either a pure dump or for another similar contract (Furcal). The move from Contreras to Santana at worst is a lateral move, IMO. So in essence, you have the ability to rid yourself of 3 expensive contracts and replace them with 3 cheap contracts. You have to take Santana over Shields if given the choice. It makes much more sense.

Would the Angels really keep Santana in the pen? With Garland, they still have Lackey, Weaver, Saunders, and Tubby McGoo. We need to get Santana in this deal. If there is ever a time to acquire Santana, this would be the time and the deal. I almost fear that KW has enough blind faith in Floyd that if given the choice, he'd choose Shields over Santana to go along with Kotchman and Figgins.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Oct 8, 2007 -> 02:29 PM) Career Splits: April/Mar. .294 .342 .453 .795 May .231 .277 .348 .625 June .246 .283 .408 .691 July .205 .256 .351 .607 August .249 .282 .417 .699 Sept./Oct. .295 .332 .560 .892 Clearly, we have to keep Uribe. He's the only guy we have who can hit in the cold! Perhaps we've underestimated Juan Uribe's intelligence as a player. Captain Crappy seems to have it mastered. Good first and last impressions. I mean, who really remembers impressions 2-5? Certainly not Sox management.

If Vizquel and Uribe cost similar, go with Vizquel. It's at the point with Juan, that pretty much any change is good change.