Balta1701

QUOTE (raBBit @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 09:54 PM) If we went into 2015 with a bonafide defensive CF, and then Eaton/Gillaspie/Johnson at LF/3B/2B there would be plenty of ABs for Semien to pick up. With this manager? Only if Eaton keeps getting hurt. Robin doesn't use his bench.

An average #1 starter puts up about 6 fWAR per year. That's a reasonable definition of an ace to me. Just under 4 war was the average for a #2. Burgle pitched like an ace in 2005 and has otherwise generally been a solid #2 starter, often an above average number 2.

QUOTE (chitownsportsfan @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 09:25 PM) I think it means the Sox see Semian as a super sub with a bat (say: 270/330/400) that you could squint hard and say "ok, if someone gets injured 30 games of this guy in left won't kill us". I dunno, it's arguable that he has 3 more talented players ahead of him already on the 25 man (Conor, Alexei, Gordo) and 2 players more talented than him (Micah and Sanchez) in AAA and the Sox see his future as a super sub. 300 PA a year as a guy that can cover 2B,3B and the Corners is a nice piece, especially at min salary. Right now, a .730 OPS from LF is actually right around the league average for LF production.

QUOTE (chitownsportsfan @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 07:15 PM) eh, if it was so easy everyone would do it. Donaldson is like an 7-8 WAR player, that's a pretty f***ing good foundation. Basically it comes down to "find really good players". Traded, I might add, as a low level minor league throw in from the Cubs in the Rich Harden deal. That is one I think is important. When you trade away guys, steal some lottery tickets from a team's lowest minor league levels.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 03:56 PM) The fact that the man may have 'left', and not been 'left behind'? Apparently the military also promoted him while he was in captivity, so whatever the exact allegations against him are, that seems to be an indication that the military does not believe them.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 03:56 PM) The fact that the man may have 'left', and not been 'left behind'? The fact that EVERY allegation of prisoner abuse here is treated with kid gloves, a US citizen claims abuse there, everyone shrugs? From the perspective of him as a POW, that should not matter in the least. If he did desert, then he should face military charges for doing so, but unless he renounces loyalty to the U.S. he is a prisoner of war. If he did not, "being disillusioned with an incredibly stupid war" is not reason to be left behind. You think this guy is the only American to get roughed up in a Mexican prison?

QUOTE (raBBit @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 03:30 PM) Except Carlos Quentin isn't one of the most naturally talented players in the game. The guy had a career 125+ OPS over 1100+ PAs with majority of these PAs coming as a 19 and 20 year old. Are you forgetting the fact that he should be playing in the mid levels of the minor leagues? All he's done is show he can hold his own at each and every part of the game. Fielding, running, base-running, hitting for power, approach, hitting for average, etc. Harper wasn't the same for a while after running into a brick wall and yet, his stats still look the way they do. And Chris Sale is also one of the most naturally talented players in the game. He has a career ERA+ of 149 and did that work before the age of 25. The problem isn't that your arguments regarding Harper are wrong, it's that they apply to Sale too.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 03:28 PM) What part of that don't you get? He treats rules as suggestions and brings back a pow who may not have been so much a prisoner as a convert or sympathizer. And when asked for help by family members for a veteran in a Mexico jail, nothing. http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/30/us/mexico-us...ined/index.html The fact that one of these was a situation where the U.S. was actually in combat and the other wasn't? The fact that the guy broke the law in Mexico whereas this person was an actual combatant? The fact that the U.S. military generally seems to have a tradition of "not leaving men behind" in areas where they are in active combat?

QUOTE (raBBit @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 03:05 PM) The first year Harper stays healthy for a full season he'll be a top 2-3 player in the game. I could buy that, but if you're going to hold "injury risk" against a pitcher like Chris Sale you've got to do the same thing with a guy with Harper's record.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 11:31 AM) And yet an American veteran still remains in a Mexican prison being tortured, with no action or response from the American government than to give him access to a 'list' of lawyers that 'might' be able to help. Considering all the ass-kissing the Feds to to Mexico, you would think that one phone call would do it. Seriously?

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Jun 2, 2014 -> 10:21 AM) Again, point me to all of those posts you've written about the poor black kids of Chicago who are gunned down every weekend. I'm sure you think, write and advocate about that issue 24/7 right? If only those kids had more guns...

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Jun 1, 2014 -> 04:37 PM) Hopefully a trade is looming but this needed to be done. He needs consistent at bats. Infield at Charlotte is Davidson, M. Johnson, Saladino, Sanchez, Semien. Isn't Micah still on the DL? And Saladino's played a bit of OF recently.

Yay!

QUOTE (Feeky Magee @ Jun 1, 2014 -> 02:17 PM) Kris Bryant 2-run homer off Chris Beck. Bryant is so, so good. Haven't seen all of their big prospects but have seen several of them on their way up. He's the first where I was legitimately impressed.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jun 1, 2014 -> 12:31 PM) If our best hope if for Johnson to be the long man in the bullpen and make 3-5 starts per year, we're going to have no choice but to go the FA agent route, get a collegiate arm with the 3 pick and/or find more waiver wire guys like Humber/Noesi/Carroll or McHugh with the Astros. And Danks has to look closer to a 3 than a 5/long man (aka Barry Zito) for the remainder of his contract. That's not "our" best hope. That's what Marty hopes for.

None of the issues you cite with Cespedes bother me. His fairly poor performance the last couple years does. High K rate, low OBP, numbers heavily reliant on home run power.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 31, 2014 -> 08:35 PM) My position is that it is in place. Which is why you also advocated trading away sale, Quintana, and Abreu. Because it's the only way to make sure that the core you now say is in place is ruined. Great way to make sure te years of losing you want happens.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 31, 2014 -> 08:24 PM) Exactly. Either the position core is mostly in place or it is not. And your opinion is that it isn't so they should trade off that core and then spend several large FA contracts to replace that core next year, thus guaranteeing that they have neither flexibility nor the resources to add in the future.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 31, 2014 -> 08:13 PM) My feeling on this is if the position core is not here already they have a lot bigger problems than a $50M contract. Which is why you advocated trading that core.

QUOTE (LDF @ May 31, 2014 -> 04:35 PM) I would love stl and A. Craig as the player. Craig is a 1b and you can play Jose and Craig as your DH and 1b. Craig make good contact / avg, and does have some power. he is young and good salary. Craig turns 30 in July, and his average strikeout total in a full season comes in around 100. He may very well be closer to the .250 hitter he has been this year than the .300 hitter he was last year with that strikeout total, and at that age he's probably not likely to get better than he is right now.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 31, 2014 -> 04:13 PM) Ok, you think there is a good possibility that they will lose 99 games and suffer a 25% attendance decrease if they add 2 free agent starters who cost $120M next year. Fair enough. 2 mediocre starters to replace Quintana? Yeah, that's a recipe for more losses.

Will Venable's numbers coming into today were almost as bad as De Aza's. He's 4/4 today.

QUOTE (greg775 @ May 31, 2014 -> 04:00 PM) Really? I think this one is different. She's going to be running as a "queen of England" type candidate. It's basically her turn to win and she knows it. The Republicans pretty much have no chance nowadays until (if) they ever get their s*** together. I don't think issues will really matter re. Hillary and the more she gets out there and speaks it might just hurt her. She's gotten cranky in the past on bad days and my personal feeling is she has a little Bob Dole in her, kind of an unlikeable quality (on TV). And though some of you may get mad at me for saying this (the people who think platforms truly matter), the how you appear on TV factor is one of the biggest if not THE biggest factors in an election. To her credit, Hillary will NEVER be as annoying on TV as Sarah Palin. The moment I see her or hear a word come out of her mouth, it's time to change channels. Ugh. I'm not mad at that, I'm just annoyed that you're basically judging her for the lack of content in her campaign 2.5 years before the actual election. In every other country in the world, no one would have a clue who was even running 2 years in advance, let alone be mad that they're not presenting a detailed policy platform. Elections get called and are over in a period of weeks everywhere else and that would be a vast improvement over this never-ending campaign/fundraising we do.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 31, 2014 -> 03:37 PM) The prospect haul you would get for Sale and Quintana would expedite the rebuilding. Hell, throw in Abreu too. What scares you so much about a payroll commitment of $70M for 2015? At the least you're finally being honest. You want the White Sox to do the half-decade+ of losing like the Cubs and Astros have done. Clear out everything, lose 100 ever year.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 31, 2014 -> 03:37 PM) The prospect haul you would get for Sale and Quintana would expedite the rebuilding. Hell, throw in Abreu too. What scares you so much about a payroll commitment of $70M for 2015? Losing 99 games and another 25% decrease in attendance?