chitownsportsfan

I usually go for peanuts and popcorn and beer. Camden Yards had 22 oz Coors light for $3.49 and would sell them to me two at a time. That was nice. Safeco's cheapest beer is like $6.99 now and that's for a 12oz bud. At least they have really good beer (by the bleachers you can actually buy bombers of Stone for instance) at Safeco. At NYS and Citi field they have piss that they charge $8 for. Citi field has kind of a cool concessions the "Pepsi Porch" where you can get a hot dog then basically have a little buffet style topping bar included. Can load it up with whatever you like. Haven't been to the cell in forever but I do always remember getting a brat with my dad when we went. As a kid tho everything tastes good.

QUOTE (OmarComing25 @ Feb 15, 2016 -> 03:36 PM) There also wasn't a great alternative in the first half, the entire team was horses*** against LHP last year. Once Trayce came up LaRoche basically saw no time against lefties, but I'm not going to blame Robin too much for sending him out there in the first half when pretty much the only other option was Bonifacio. Doh, they signed a super sub to play against LHP then forgot him. As for LaRoche, 20% of his PA last year were against LHP, that's a pretty big chunk of his time and he posted an OPS+ of 8 against them. It's not just that he's bad against LHP, HE SHOULD NEVER FACE LHP.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 15, 2016 -> 01:45 PM) I might be the only person, but I am expecting a bounce back season from LaRoche. Dead cat bounce maybe, that's all I see. His splits against LHP have been horse s*** since '12 and with the way RV loves to trot him about there against LHP he's going to have another s*** year IMO. We'll see. I wish they would have just bought him out or traded him for pennies on the dollar. Roster spot is more useful imo.

QUOTE (WhiteSoxLifer @ Feb 11, 2016 -> 05:10 PM) Boras isn't Desmond agent my bad, that's the last time I rely on MLBtradrumors, they had a blurb on him saying Boris was his agent. Unless he changed recently it's "Sports One Athlete Solutions".

Where did Law have Anderson is his top 100? Thanks.

Boras getting desperate, better float some more rumors for his clients. Every single time Heyman posts something like this it's 100% Boras trying to stir up interest in his client. It might be true, but take it with a huge grain of salt.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Feb 9, 2016 -> 04:27 PM) Just to get it on the record, does this move seem more Hahn or KW? Didn't Williams covet Latos at one point or another (in all fairness, everyone did about three years ago)? The money screams Hahn and the player screams Williams. If this is an example of some FO synergy I will take it.

QUOTE (BrianAnderson @ Feb 9, 2016 -> 03:58 PM) That doesn't really expand on why ... Just like most people here, I'm sure we are happy AJ was here. I feel like I'm going to give the benefit of the doubt. Not going to say any names, but a lot of these guys aren't exactly saints. I've seen them out and about at bars sans wife before... just saying. Throw the ball well, keep your ERA down, and play to win the game. That's what I'm here to see. I'm not here to care if you have 10 gf's outside of your wife. I'm here to see your baseball skills and get a win. As long as he's not abusing anyone, he's fine on my team. Yea this. He seems like he's a dick towards women but if that is an issue than f*** who you gonna sign? Just don't hit women. But cheating and sleeping around and leading girls on? Par for the course for pro athletes.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Feb 9, 2016 -> 02:44 PM) There's gotta be incentives in this contract right? Very rarely do you see a guy 2 years removed from being a top tier pitcher take a flat $3 million one year deal. Probably just the promise to compete for a spot in the rotation out of spring. At this point, how many teams were offering that and were willing to just do a one year deal? He might have had a two year deal on the table elsewhere but decided to try and rebuild some value in Chicago. He has a good year for Chicago he could easily be looking at a two or even three year deal for 20+ million next offseason.

QUOTE (Knackattack @ Feb 9, 2016 -> 02:40 PM) Low Risk/High Reward is definitely a thing.. the probability of high reward is very small but the cost of the player is so low that it's worth the shot.. Right, in this case he's not blocking a prospect and he's not taking a 25 man spot away from anyone that's a difference maker so there's not much opportunity cost there. It's three million, which is chicken scratch in today's market and he could possibly bounce back and have a 2-3 WAR season. It's a fine deal, they probably were able to convince him to sign based on playing time and Cooper.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Feb 9, 2016 -> 02:34 PM) Anyway possible to build a package around Johnson for Puig? And not being laughed out of the building? _________ This is a low risk, low reward move IMO. I really don't see how a guy that hasn't pitched a full season in over four years is gonna turn it around abut hey Coop'el'fix'em right? If someone gets hurt and he steps into the 5th starter role he has more upside than Beck or similar AAAA fodder so that's good but I'm not expecting much from him. Edit: doh, looking at his B-Ref page all wrong. Well, he has been pitching full seasons. This is a better move than I thought.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 5, 2016 -> 06:02 PM) There were a few different things talked about at times. The dome in Tampa was built with the hope of luring the White Sox. The team bought land in Addison and thought about that for a while. Those were the two real things I remember being talked about during that stretch. Further back in history there were times where they almost moved to Milwaukee and Seattle IIRC. Thanks for the info I'm glad they stayed in the city. Some very fond memories of road trips down from N. MI with my dad "we're doing it without stopping to piss son" to New Comiskey. As a kid, having the stadium right in the middle of what felt like the busiest, coolest place in the world was neat.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 5, 2016 -> 05:45 PM) Only two parks were built between 1974 and 1991, which were the SkyDome and Tropicana in Tampa. New Comiskey was literally the first open air ballpark built in the US since Kaufman Stadium in 1973. While they could have done more, literally every ballpark that came after that, which is over 20, took from their mistakes and learned from them. The Sox didn't have that luxury. For sure, the timing was poor and it's hard to knock Chicago for going with a rather bland design when at that point it's just what you did. At least they kept the park in the City and didn't move it to the burbs. I don't know much about the history of it, was only a young kid when the Cell opened, was there talk of moving out of the south side?

I usually defend the Cell but the only park built around the same time that it can beat is Comerica. I cannot stand Comerica's sight lines. The Cell is just about as "cookie cutter" of a design as you can use for a ballpark. It reminds me some of Safeco except that Safeco pretty much did everything better including a removable roof, less steep upper deck, and city views from the upper concourses. If you're gonna do "cookie cutter" design, Safeco is how you do it.

QUOTE (Chilihead90 @ Feb 5, 2016 -> 01:21 AM) Is your opinion of his swing Pre-AFL, where he changed his swing and saw instant and eye-popping results? Because I think that's significant to those who ask if his AFL results were random. Well the video I was watching was him at the recent Sox "hitting clinic" so yea. I don't pretend to be an expert on the baseball swing by any stretch but I do know that guys that have that big of a load mechanism (recent Sox example has to be Brent Morel) -- often will struggle to adjust to the additional 2-5mph they are going to see on fastballs at MLB level. We'll see if he can produced this year at AA that will be the big measuring stick. Everything he's done so far points to progress but he's also old for his level and this will be his first chance to prove he's a legit prospect IMO.

Not really a fan of that swing, long loading mechanism and really doesn't seem to have the type of bat speed needed to turn on MLB fastballs and drive the ball. Seems like his lower half is fighting his top half at times as well. That said, that's just like my opinion from watching half a dozen swings in the cage. Obviously he has some skills but I think Caulfield made a good point about his age and level and performance as well. He's supposed to make strides given his relative age -- if he can hold his own at AA with the bat then maybe you talk about him as an MLB regular. Personally I see a speedy 4th OF at best.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Feb 2, 2016 -> 07:53 PM) Quentin was wound tighter than a drum. He never seemed to really enjoy playing the game because he was always so analytical and tough on himself. He was the modern-day equivalent of Harold Baines in terms of discussing himself or giving great quotes to the media, even in 2008 when he was on top of the world and headed for the MVP. As a person/clubhouse guy, it was always "that's just Carlos being Carlos/rolled eyes" but pretty much everyone really liked the guy. It was also that they probably recognized the same struggle all young players fight through to prove they belong in the majors and then eventually they come out the other side and learn to develop a coping mechanism for dealing with the stress, like Konerko at the mid-point of his career. Could have just summed it up like with: "headcase". Too intense for baseball really. Probably could have channeled his energy on the football field more. He was too cerebral and intense for his own good. Great player but IMO he was probably a guy that was using PEDs and he had the type of injury (plantar facsia) that can be caused by getting too bulky too fast. Too bad about his torn labrum that's a major injury. I'd cut Avi some slack as well last year because of it. Obviously this year he needs to step it up but a torn labrum is a major injury, pitcher or not.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 27, 2016 -> 06:49 PM) The strange thing about this division is that there isn't much separation between the teams. I would say the Twins are still a clear step behind, as their kids still have some development to do, but realistically it isn't hard to draw up scenarios that see the Tigers, White Sox, Royals, and Indians finishing in any combination of 1st through 4th place. Health will be a huge thing, as that could break a teams season really quick if a star player goes down. I agree. It would be nice if for once it's the Sox that rise above the 80-85 win projection and take the crown with 90-92 wins. I really don't see anyone in the division getting more than 92 this season as there isn't really any team you'd expect to be awful and get easy wins against. And obviously there is no elite team on paper.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jan 20, 2016 -> 08:24 PM) He's obviously one of those guys who just despise fans' second guessing. There's really nothing wrong with that EXCEPT he gets paid a lot of money to deal with fan criticism (the little there is). He needs to just shut up and coach. But I can see why he'd hate second guessing. Is he a total jerk in real life? Can anybody shed light on that or does he just hate media and opinionated fans? When I saw him at spring training he was fine. Polite, signed balls, generally seemed to enjoy talking to the fans. I just think he's a grumpy old man who probably feels he doesn't have to suffer any fools given his standing with the ORG. As I keep saying, the ORG has gone pretty stale and guys are way too comfie in their seats. Including Cooper IMO.

QUOTE (Saufley @ Jan 20, 2016 -> 08:10 PM) Me too, with the proper guidance of my Father. And that man in your avatar!

Sox def don't "owe anyone anything" but as a pro club I can def pay for my tickets / mlb.tv and voice my opinion when at the park or watching online or wherever and whenever else. Cooper's public persona is awful however. He's really not doing the club any favors dissing the fans. You never, ever, win as a franchise insulting the fans it doesn't matter if you're correct or justified you just cannot critique your fans it's not good practice.

QUOTE (bjm676 @ Jan 15, 2016 -> 10:43 AM) Must be nice to bad at your job, but still bring home $2 mil. He's the top 1% of a multi billion dollar industry. He sucks relative to other MLB regulars sure but he's at the pinnacle of the baseball industry,

Historically, don't FA that wait this long to sign usually get less AAV than guys that sign earlier? The pool of dollars is smaller, the teams bidding are fewer, and in general you lose leverage the closer to spring it gets. We are only about 45 days from pitchers and catchers. I really have no idea but it seems logical.

QUOTE (SouthSideSale @ Dec 30, 2015 -> 06:10 PM) The thing that eases my mind is Rosenthal saying he expects us to land Gordon or Cespedes. are they both boras clients?

QUOTE (WBWSF @ Dec 26, 2015 -> 06:15 PM) If the White Sox don't sign anybody else I'm hoping they trade LaRoche, Danks and Garcia to the Angels for Mike Trout. This would turn out to be the most shocking trade in baseball since Rocky Colavito was traded for Harvey Kuenn. Hey, I asked for a Vette for Christmas and 40 acres in Costa Rica. Didn't get it but it didn't hurt to ask.