Balta1701

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:53 PM) Davidson takes walks, which is encouraging. Webb vs. Nate for the closer role I guess. I get the feeling Webb is a ways off from taking it. Do the Sox have enough RH Relievers that he could start the year in AAA? I could still see Petricka beating him out and taking the final bullpen spot this year.

QUOTE (chisoxfan310 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:52 PM) Let's get this topic deleted and out of here now, shall we? We don't delete topics, but there's no reason to keep bumping it.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:51 PM) Relievers are relievers. I liked Addy but I'm sure this organization will churn out another Addison Reed or two this year. I agree. I have zero issues with this deal, it's exactly the kind of move the White Sox should be making.

QUOTE (fathom @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:45 PM) Problem is his results weren't very good for a top reliever. 4.17 career ERA is solid, but definitely does scream out to me as future stud closer. Worth stressing that he does have the stuff to be significantly better than those numbers. They've clearly been impacted at least by him tiring out, esp. at the end of 2012 during his rookie season. He was definitely learning how to be a better pitcher in 2013 and that could be seen quite readily if you watched him. (That said, this is still a fair deal, I just want to make sure Addy isn't downplayed too much).

Federal judge rules the NSA's program of gathering data on all telephone calls made in the U.S. is unconstitutional; ruling on hold pending appeal, NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams & NBC's Pete Williams reports.

QUOTE (dayan024 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:42 PM) Bernie Pleskoff ‏@BerniePleskoff 16m Matt Davidson should fit very well at U S Cellular Field. Power will play there. Reed has pitched in hitter-friendly parks like Chase Field. I think the power would play anywhere, but that's not the issue we ought to focus on. Strikeouts and defense will make or break him, it looks like.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:36 PM) They would prefer Hernandez because he's a better pitcher. He allows fewer runs, fewer base runners, eats more innings, and gives your team a better chance to win. Insert Chris Sale instead for Felix, the point remains. Just because they did not win does not mean that the pitcher did not do more than others to give his team a chance to win. If the team is bad, then their W-L is going to be severely affected. Do you really think the Sox players saw Chris Sale go out to the mound this year and think "OK, we can tank it today, Sale is on the mound" ? Is he a bad pitcher because he went 11-14? Sure, there may be some intangible benefit to the team having a stud starter on the mound, but I like to think these guys are professionals and they are going to go out and do their best day in and day out, regardless of who is pitching on the mound. A serious lack of TWTW.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:32 PM) I had called for Reed to be traded earlier in the year. I think he is a good pitcher but regarless of 40 saves I thought he was always skating on thin ice. I believe thjis is the type of trade we will see helping this club. We are getting younger and picking up really excellent young talent. I do not see us done yet either. We may see a closer or catcher coming to this team soon and one of our OF'ers leaving or some money spent on a FA I kept saying "no unless the return is really solid" to everyone who wanted to trade Reed during the year. This is a solid return and is the sort of thing I would have waited for.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:29 PM) Those who wanted Castellanos for Reed in the summer...this is essentially the exact same sort of thing. Exactly why I focused on him. I feel like Davidson is a small step below where he was, but this is still solid and that's why I said you don't give up Reed unless someone gives you something really valuable. Eventually someone did.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:04 PM) http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/bulls/ Out of everyone on that roster, I can't imagine anyone feeling worse than Noah. I'd almost want to trade him just for that reason.

QUOTE (dayan024 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:25 PM) So does Keppinger or Gillaspe get traded now? You'd have to assume at least one of them has to be moved. Davidson has had a full season at AAA so it's hard to justify putting him there again (even though he's a bit young), but you can't carry all 3 and there has to be a backup IF somewhere. Heck, it would make sense for this roster to move both of them. That would clear an opportunity to use Leury as the backup IF and also have Danks on the roster, giving more depth at every position as well as an actual LH hitting bat on the bench (which we now desperately need)

QUOTE (flavum @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:20 PM) Hector Santiago, Addison Reed, and Brandon Jacobs for Adam Eaton and Matt Davidson...a starting CF/leadoff man and a power hitting 3B....both under team control for 5 years. Great job by Hahn. Davidson is under control for 6.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:18 PM) Less than you were hoping for? This is a fantastic return for Addison Reed. Not sure what you were expecting, but Davidson is an incredibly talented prospect at a major position of weakness for who also addresses our OBP issue. Win all around IMO. And on top of it, we can now use Nate Jones or someone else as our closer in 2014 and potentially turn that player into a valuable asset if he succeeds in the role. Makes so much sense in a transition year where winning doesn't really matter. Just looking at his numbers I'm immediately worried about the strikeouts. The White Sox simply don't have a good history of turning guys with 100+ strikeouts in minor league seasons into quality big leaguers. If his strikeouts go up a little as a big leaguer we'd be talking about a guy K-ing 175 times and so far he doesn't have the HR numbers to be productive doing that. That could change of course, but we will see. That's why I'm not 100% fawning right now, there's a real risk in his numbers that you can't overlook. Anyone know anything about his defense?

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:13 PM) Scot Gregor ‏@scotgregor 55s GM Rick Hahn on Davidson: "We view him as potential middle of order, run-producing 3B for a long time" I've said this with every acquisition except Eaton...the Sox continue to seem like every deal is focused on acquiring more power.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:11 PM) Holy crap, that came out of no where. Now it makes sense that the Sox were still adding right handed relievers. You have to like this deal for the Sox, as now they have their 3B, and they have him under control for the next six years. All they gave up was a closer they really don't need for at least a year or two, in an organization where they pump out quality hard-throwing relievers by the bucketful. Next up Petricka? Webb? If I had to guess, Jones out of ST and then up for grabs? At least it can't be Santiago.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 02:09 PM) I liked Addison, but he did seem to wear down the past two years down the stretch (his velocity dropped 2 MPH last year). This is a good haul for him. I had no issue with trading Addy but I wanted the right return. This may be just a little less than I was hoping for but it also is at a position where this franchise could seriously benefit from an upgrade. He's also exceptionally young and, assuming he makes the roster this year (which I'm not sure about right now) he's under team control through 2020.

He looks to have a serious issue with strikeouts that could impact his big league performance. 109, 147, 126, 134 in full minor league seasons the last few years. That's the obvious weakness I'd say, that number goes up any higher and he's not an effective big league hitter. But he's very young for each level he's been at, so perhaps there's room for improvement also.

Prospect Ratings by Baseball America: Pre-2011: Rated #99 Prospect Pre-2012: Rated #97 Prospect Pre-2013: Rated #88 Prospect Prospect Ratings by MLB.com: Pre-2013: Rated #77 Prospect

Wow, now there's the kind of move I was interested in seeing. Surprising and aggressive.

QUOTE (Chet Kincaid @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 01:43 PM) He probably won't be able to make effective starts until after the all star break. I'll pass. He seems to be ahead of that schedule somewhat, but if he's only on a 1 year deal he does not fit the White Sox's needs. The White Sox could, before they signed the guy from the Royals, have used a right-handed 6th starter under team control for a couple years to step in if one of the young guys struggles in the spring or gets hurt. It doesn't make sense to sign a guy on a 1 year deal because if he starts having success, you have little to no value in trading him midseason because he's a "cheap back of the rotation guy at the deadline" and there's very little value in that in a trade. A team that has 5 guys in their rotation but some young guys and some guys with injury concerns who also won their division last year is a much better fit for a guy who wants to pitch in a 1 year deal and try to get healthy/rebuild value. They match in all the categories they'd like, we dont'.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 12:26 PM) Coming off of Tommy John? Good work if you can get it. Yeah, that's a lot more than I'd have paid for him.

QUOTE (Swingandalongonetoleft @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 11:54 AM) Saw it last night, I guess that's what happens when you try to squeeze 9 hours of content over 3 movies from what essentially amounts to a short story (in comparison to Lord of the Rings). I enjoyed it, though. Looking forward to the conclusion.

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 08:24 AM) Vinny may be one of the most annoying animated characters ever. He's Family Guy's Jar Jar Binks. QUOTE (Iwritecode @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 11:38 AM) Agreed. He was even worse than “New Brian” who thankfully only lasted one episode.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 01:19 PM) You'll definitely have to bring it defensively. Here is a basic formula on how to beat them. #1) Shutdown the running game, keeping 7-9 guys in the box at all times while throwing blitzes in there too. #2) Contain Russell Wilson, using stunts and spies to attempt to confuse him and keep him in the pocket. #3) Play ball control offense, using runs, counters, tosses, misdirections, play action, and short passes in general to keep the defense on the field. #4) Take calculated risks on 4th downs. It's still an incredibly difficult feat, but I think if you can accomplish the above, you have a fairly decent chance at winning. Every one of those I think could be accomplished except I really would worry about how you'd control Wilson right now. I haven't seen as much of the Seahawks as I'd like but from everything I've read the numbers he's put up this year are bordering on ridiculous.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Dec 16, 2013 -> 01:02 PM) Moment of silence for the release of Mike James. Thank you. And what, 2 weeks ago he was about to take Teague's spot on the roster?