WHITESOXRANDY

So, bench Crede for Fields ? And, bench Erstad for Sweeney and play Owens in left ? And, then when these guys do nothing - which is very likely, what do you do then ? I'm sorry but Fields, Owens and Sweeney are not AROD, Jeter and Giambi. There is almost no help in the system. Fields might produce about the same as Crede has and I haven't seen any reaosn to believe that Sweeney and Owens would be any better than what we've had. I think a good shakeup would be to trade Crede right now for a big hitting outfielder - righthanded. Bring up Fields and give him the job permanently. Then let's see what happens. Because you have to trade Crede anyway.

This team was built with a whole bunch of LOW OBP guys. That's what Ozzie likes. Guess what, that's why no one's on base when someone hits a home run. Thome is the only guy that's really a good OBP guy. If we had 4 or 5 guys with lifetime OBP near .400 - regardless of what they hit, there would be more runs scored. Dye and Konerko walk some and that helps. But, A.J., Crede, Uribe, CF, LF - low low OBP.

I'm definitely not ready to do anything drastic yet. It was just a week ago that I was thinking that the Sox were looking damn good. Let's wait (I'm sure the Sox will) for Thome, Pods and Hall to come back. And, also for Crede, Konerko and Dye to get hot. The pitching is probably good enough to keep us in the race until then. IF NOT, then in July I would look to trade Crede, Dye AND Buehrle. I would think that those 3 could bring a pretty good bundle in young offensive talent. Crede is a goner for sure. Can you say BORASS ? Dye will most likely leave for more than the Sox will offer him. I still think that if they can get a good deal for him, it's worth the money. I think that Buehrle is expendable now that there is so much good young pitching in the system. The problem is the Sox offense, while having a lot of talent, is disfunctional and the parts don't fit together. Aditionally, there is almost nothing of significant help in the minors as far as everyday players. The Sox may have the worst system in baseball for this. I'd rather it be this way then no pitching. Anyway, I think if they traded these 3 for the best young offensive players they can get, the Sox would be fine. But, I'm still not giving up on this season yet - not even close.

If you want to fire Walker, it's fine by me. But, this lineup will still be one of the slowest in all of baseball, awful against left handed pitching, be full of low OBP guys and still have holes in LF and CF where big hitters normally reside. I don't think the Sox will make this change. I see them waiting for Thome, Hall and Pods to come back. If that fails by July, we might see a fire sale.

Well, I definitely disagree with some on Lieber. The guy is a winner. He won 17 games in 2005 and 14 the year before. He won 9 being injure last year. He's throwing well right now and as for being 37 - so what ? That's nothing -there are lots of pitchers in starting rotations from 37-43. No one's talking about a long term contract with the guy but he's better than whoever the Sox will have in the 5th spot. Oh, and Gavin Floyd, a buster. Apparently, Danks will be the starter and I hope he's ready. He looks good but I'd rather not rush him.

QUOTE(Vance Law @ Mar 23, 2007 -> 11:21 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Would you have preferred Garcia for Gio and Floyd, or Garcia for Gio and Lieber? For this year, I'd rather have Leiber. Leiber is still a decent pitcher that knows how to win. I'm not happy with any of the Sox alternatives for the 5th spot now and I think that it's gonna kill their playoff chances. Danks looks real good but I think he's being rushed if he's the 5th starter. Floyd just flat out isn't good enough and, no, he isn't nearly as good as Leiber right now. Haeger ? Who knows ? I like him but don't think he's really ready either but I might take the chance on him of the 3 right now. That's my point of view - low opinion of Floyd and I would feel much more comfortable in trying to win this division in 2007 with a decent proven major league starting pitcher in the 5 hole.

Yeah, I'm not disagreeing with any of these comments. If the Sox deem keeping both Thornton and Mac necessary due to concerns about Jenks and them not confident about any of the young guys being that ready tobe counted on in a set-up role then....that settles that. Unless Philly would be willing to take a lesser bullpen arm for Leiber . I would love to see the Sox pick him up for the rotation. Apparently, they were never offered that much for him and that's why he's still there. Garcia is going to be fine - he'll make his 30 starts.

Firstly, let me state that this is a trade that I concocted. I'm not saying that it's a rumor. The deal I'm thinking of is this: to the Sox: Jon Leiber, Aaron Rowand and Carlos Carrasco to the Phils: Rob Mackowiak and EITHER Matt Thornton or Mike MacDougal To AAA Charlotte would go Brian Anderson, nd John Danks Bullpen candidates would be Haeger, Masset, Logan, Sisco, Jenks, Floyd and Aardsma to go with either Thornton or Mac. Two of them would go to Charlotte. I think that for this year, the Sox would be helped tremendously by having a fairly solid 5th starter that is ML ready and not have to worry about rushing a kid or playing musical chairs with the spot. If a kid proves to be ready by July....well the Sox could move Leiber or Buehrle. The Sox get the RH bat and CFer in Rowand AND they DOUBLE the grinder effect ! Woo Hoo ! Also, with a really good RHP prospect the future would look even brighter. I think the Sox could afford to lose either Thornton or MAC if they are getting a 5th starter (Leiber). What do you think ? Would this be too much for the Phils to give up ? They are desperate for a quality set-up man that could possibly close in the event that Gordon goes down. Also, They could use a backup plan for 3b with Wes Helms currently there as well as a backup in the outfield and lefty bat. This is the year Philly is going for it and they have a good chance to win the division. Would this deal work for both teams ?

The Sox have one good outfielder and if they added Brady Clark, they would still have only one. I would LOVE to see the Sox add another serious player for the outfield - and, no Erstad, Pods, Anderson (right now) and Sweeney (right now ) are not. I'm not even sure that Rowand is enough of an upgrade to make a deal worthwhile. Get someone really good ! I could live with any one of the above guys in the OF but not 2 of them. It's just wrong and will probably, by itself ,be enough prevent the Sox from a post season berth . If they trade Mackowiak, I think they should just go for the best prospect that they can get.

Floyd and Vazquez. We're collecting pitchers with the BEST stuff in the game. What, you want them to win baseball games too ? It reminds me of the NFL scouting combines. "Look at this guy's scores ! Can he play football ? I don't know ?"

Yeah, no room for error in this division. This isn't the NL Central unfortuantely. Whoever wins it has to have a great season. The Sox can't have a great season with a black hole in the 5 spot in the rotation or with a 1-2 of Pods, Erstad. Gimme a break. I know......no one makes outs with a better attitude than Darin Erstad. (teal)

QUOTE(Buehrle>Wood @ Mar 17, 2007 -> 06:46 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> We don't need a 5th starter in April I don't believe. Keep Haeger in the bullpen for the month and send everyone else down. Heck, we could use the extra roster spot for an extra position player if need be. That's one of the best ideas I've heard in a while.

I don't understand the lack of confidence....Erstad is definitely due for about 240 hits and a .355 BA.

I think that we'll know a lot more in 48 hours because the Sox are supposed to get the squad down to 28 by then. It's getting exciting.

QUOTE(retro1983hat @ Mar 16, 2007 -> 12:14 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> No, no, no, no, no, please not the dreaded SUNDAY LINE-UP. Oh how I hated sitting down on a Sunday afternoon to see: Ozuna Mackowiak Gload Cintron Widger All in the lineup at the same time. On top of that, the only regulars would be Uribe and Anderson. You're exaggerating dude. I just said against some lefties Ozuna / Pods - a slight advantage and rest for Pods, Hall / A.J. - well documented that the Sox come out ahead and Perez / Thome - Thome clearly struggled against lefties last year and Perez clearly hits them. Those 3 aren't going to hurt the Sox defensively either because it's only 2 positions and Hall = A.J. and Pods is no great defender.

I like Mack. too and I don't want to get rid of him. But, a lineup with Ozuna, Hall and Perez against some lefties could be pretty good. Also, Perez can play 3B and 1b. I don't see the Sox getting rid of Ozuna or Cintron so if they want to keep either Perez or Terrero (which I don't like) then it looks like Mack. is the odd man out, no ? Could the Cards use him in their OF and to back up Rolen ?

It looks like the So xcould be leaning toward keeping Perez so that makes Mack. expendable. Even though I like him, it seems that the Sox won't need him. Anybody think that the Sox could get something good for him ? What team could really use him ? I think that he would be good for a team that needs a solid backup at the corners and third base or has an injury at one of those positions. Could he bring a nice prospect back ?

I don't know how many people here are satisfied with finishing with a winning record in the best division in baseball - whether that's 2nd, 3rd or 4th place. If you are, that's ok. But, to WIN this very very tight race with 3 other excellent teams, every game is gonna count big. The Sox can't afford to play games every other 5th game with "we'll give Floyd a few more games to figure it out" or "Danks is taking some lumps now but he'll learn and in a year or two he'll be really good". That's fine if you want to watch the playoffs on TV. The White Sox need 5 legitimate big league starters now -just like Detroit and Cleveland. They don't. Reason # 1 why they'll miss the playoffs. Reason # 2 - the Sox have Dye and 4- 4th outfielders. There are few teams that would start Erstad, Anderson, Ozuna, Pods, Mack. or Terrero on their team. Certainly not the American league representative in the World Series. Pods is the only one that could maybe be a good outfielder this year and that's if he stays healthy the whole year. Kenny's trades of Garcia and McCarthy, no matter how they turn out- are trades for the future. They hurt the team for 2007. If he was going to do this, then he should have signed a veteran starter for this year's 5th spot. Floyd, Danks and Haeger need more seasoning before they can be counted on every 5th day for a quality start. And, an outfielder should have been added atleast the caliber of Rowand. I do like what he did with the bullpen and the Toby Hall signing but he left these 2 spots undermanned and that's why they'll miss the playoffs.

IMO, as this team stands, the Sox won't see the post season. If they added Leiber and Rowand, I think they would win the divison. However, I wouldn't give up a whole lot for them. The divisional race is going to be very close but the difference for the Sox will come down to the 5th starter and another outfielder. If they could get Rowand cheap, then I would send BA down to Charlotte.

QUOTE(Tony82087 @ Feb 22, 2007 -> 08:09 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Give Randy credit. He has obviously seen Gio, Danks, and Floyd pitch on numerous occasions, right Randy?? My mistake. I thought this was a predictions thread.

I forgot to add a prediction to my post: Brandon McCarthy not only has a better 2007 season but will have a better career than any of Gavin Floyd, John Danks and Gio Gonzalez.

This team, based on talent, should be considered among the top 5 or so in baseball right now. However, that alone, as we saw last year does not guarantee a playoff spot. My fear is that, like last year, this team will fall just short. Before last season I was shocked about the state of the bullpen and I hated the Vazquez trade. Those turned out to be 2 of the key reasons for missing the playoffs. This year, I feel it's the 5th starter spot and the fact that we are not strong at 2 of the 3 outfield spots. If we had Brandon for the 5th spot and Kenny had added an outfielder such as a Baldelli for example - then I would be very confident about the 2007 season. Although those 2 things would not be a guarantee of anything. This year could still turn into a W.S. season but I'm not confident about a playoff spot at the moment for those reasons.

QUOTE(jackie hayes @ Feb 20, 2007 -> 12:21 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> You're conveniently forgetting the other part of the #5 slot. And you're sure the rest of the staff'll match the rest of the 2005 staff? Yes. All of the other circumstances are exactly the same as 2005. Even the Tigers are exactly the same team as 2005 so all the 2007 fifth starter has to do is be better than El Duque was and presto chango we have another World Championship. It would be nice if it worked that way.

I hope I'm wrong but i don't expect the Sox to make the playoffs. They have a very good team amd ofcourse will have another winning season but the Tigers are real good and Cleveland and Minny are tough. K.C. has improved. The division is so damn tough. And, the Yanks and Red Sox should both make the playoffs as usual(unlike last year) so that makes it all tough on the Sox. Improvements are: adding Hall will be very helpful and the bullpen looks like it could be excellent. Big problems are: the fifth starter - if anyone thinks that the Sox have a pitcher that will be as good as Garcia last year, they're dreaming. Floyd is crap and the others aren't ready. I don't understand why so many think that every 5th game doesn't count in the standings like the rest of them ? And, the outfield situation isn't good especially if Anderson doesn't take a big step forward. I have a feeling that Pods will not be healthy enough to be what he was in 2005 and Erstad is little help. IMO, if the Sox can't get the Pods of 2005 they would have been better off with a big hitter in left field. Like I said, I hope I'm wrong.

I'll predict that: The bullpen is a huge plus for the Sox this year. Podsednik is unhealthy most of the season and has his worst season for the Sox. Gavin Floyd's wins are in the single digits and loses his job as 5th starter at some point. Crede has an even better year than last year offensively. Dye replicates last year's performance. Contreras, Buehrle, Garland and Vazquez all pitch about the same as last year. Division goes like this: Detroit 94, Sox 91, Cleveland 89, Minny 86, K.C. 71. The Wild Card comes from the East division. Please note today's date.