Balta1701

Cease is totally going to the Orioles.

Please let us know what exactly this has to do with the Yankees.

This is definitely going to be Mike Clevinger.

Interesting thought line. I can't imagine a pitcher getting this kind of money. As great as Henderson is, his first full season was when he was 22, not 19. He just turned 26, whereas Henderson will turn 28 during his first year after free agency, for about 2.5 years older at free agency. Maybe inflation wins that fight, but maybe the fact that he's older limits the total money.

In reply to a post calling him a "clubhouse presence" and "Veteran stopgap" as a justification for signing him. Thanks for the personal attack, I'll go a lot harsher next time you defend Getz.

There's an interesting thing to consider in that the Dodgers have a more direct across-the-ocean connection with a larger Japanese community in the area than Chicago, but at the same time Chicago is more centrally located in the US and hasn't had anyone like Ohtani in the area. He already had the LA area known to him through time with the Angels, so it's possible that new marketing opportunities would present themselves by going to Chicago. At the very least, I don't think there's a huge loss in endorsement money by leaving LA for Chicago. Considering the deferments, an offer comparable to what the Dodgers gave him but without the deferments - maybe? 10/$600 is worth more than the face value of the Dodgers deal. Maybe that could actually get it done? He'd lose his playoff time this year but he wasn't pitching this year anyway.

Oh so last year the leadership "prevented a full mutiny"? Name a business where you actually bring in people from other businesses successfully just for leadership, but without putting them in managerial roles or giving them any instructions, support, or training from the corporate level. Your, I dunno, stock person in a warehouse driving a forklift is supposed to be the leader that the organization needs.

1. But they brought in leadership. That's always a good thing. How could it suck massive balls when there was leadership? That's the benefit of this signing, right? Leadership. Why else would it keep getting mentioned? It's always a positive. They brought in leadership and 2024 was the successful result. 2. What does that matter?

If there was any lesson, any single lesson we should take from 2024, it's to never, ever, ever look at a signing and count "leadership" as a justification for it again. The concept should be one that everyone points at while laughing after 2024. It should be a word that is so triggering that we all collapsed in tears when it was first mentioned in this thread. In 2024 Getz tried to import guys specifically to be leaders, brought in numerous players who were poor fits and overpaid some of them for no other reason other than their leadership, he brought in a dozen veterans to help out during spring training, and the end result was 121 losses. It has never been clearer. You cannot sign leadership. You cannot import leadership. This concept is flawed. This will not be a team of 22 year olds, and even if it was, there's a coaching staff. Stop spending extra money on leadership. Stop using that as a justification for bad moves. Your 2024 team's results are what you get when you try to. Guys who you bring in for leadership keep being guys who are problems, both here and elsewhere. The guys who ripped the White Sox in the press were repeatedly their supposed leaders. The worst problems in the White Sox's messes have been the supposed imported leaders. The Astros are not a big fan of the leadership of great leader Jose Abreu, and it was an expensive lesson for them. Spend money on guys who fill roles on your baseball team. Understand your roster and what can fit on it. Bring in a good coaching staff. Provide your players with the resources they need. Develop your culture over time with a consistent message, resources, and accountability. Stop hoping for a quick fix with a cheap signing that somehow makes everyone better through leadership. Do not sign generic Getz clones for leadership and expect them to paper over other issues.

An .823 OPS in Charlotte is simply not that impressive to me. For a #1 prospect in the big leagues? Dude struck out 102 times in 309 at bats. That's just not great at AAA, that would be among the worst K-rates in the leagues in the big leagues. I'd like to see him actually dominate AAA offensively at least for a month, and I'd like to see him showing signs of controlling that K-rate at least a little. What was his problem in 2018? It was his approach and K-Rate, he was probably the only guy we've ever called up who was too patient, guys could throw him strikes and he still didn't swing.

Both MLBTR and Fangraphs have Profar ad 3/$45, MLBTR has walker at 3/$60 and FG has him at 3/$54. If they were willing to carry a decent payroll, I still kinda like those signings as guys who could potentially have trade value in Y1.

I'm somewhat surprised that the Profar projection is only 3/$40, is it really that low for him coming off of last year? I am intrigued by the idea of signing Hoffman to move him back to starting, this does seem to be a league-wide trend that is working for people.

Isn't that though?

You're right. I got the years wrong. But you know what's fun? You know why I missed this? We have tried this every year! AND IT NEVER WORKS! 2020: Kenny Williams quote describing DALLAS KEUCHEL: "There is a very real leadership and motivational component. And presence will always remain something that is very hard to quantify. You know it when you see it." Does anyone here want to talk to me about the benefits of Dallas Keuchel's leadership? 2021-2022: Jose Abreu, the greatest internal leader ever is here. Was 2022 a well led team? This is a joke right? 2023: Thank god Elvis Andrus is back, this is the leadership we need. Also a veteran leader in Benintendi. Was 2023 a well led team? 2024: We spend the entire offseason adding leadership. It's basically the only thing that is added other than Fedde. Was 2024 a well led team? 2025: Tauchman: "Well at least he's a leader, this will surely be the year that the leadership will kick in." We keep signing guys who fit this profile precisely, declaring them to be leaders, then being astounded that every year is a poorly led group of players. The lesson from Mike Tauchman should not be to sign Mike Tauchman for leadership. It's that the Cubs signed a guy out of Korea, got a couple of years of cheap control and production from a guy in his early 30s. That's what we should be doing! Give me a guy who has a couple of years of control remaining, or who might be tradable. Dylan Carlson or Austin Hays or Bryan De La Cruz from the guys non-tendered this year, they're 5 years younger, they don't provide "That veteran leadership", but they have >1 year of control and if they have a good first half could be tradable for something. Or maybe find a guy from Korea, like the Cubs did, I'm not sure if there's a guy who has been over there who could do the same thing this year. Or hell, just play the AAAA guys from our system, it's cheaper and they have years of control, just not "leadership".

Oh ok, so the 2022 White Sox are the team you think of as having strong character and leadership.

“The 2023 White Sox were well led and that is the type of thing we should repeat, find me more players who look like that” is the kind of thing we should be pointing and laughing at.

You’re calling me a Cowboys fan and I’m off my rocker? Oh I know the solution, you need more veteran leadership.

Bringing in white guys and declaring them leaders by default can never fail. It can only be failed. The 2023 White Sox were brilliantly led by their great leaders, it is only us who fail to understand the greatness of their leadership.

I’m suggesting that 2023 did not go very well and that the results of 2023 might indicate a flaw in the concept itself.

2023: “this guy will bring a valuable clubhouse presence”. 2024: “oh my god did we learn nothing from 2023”

The relevant question for the White Sox should be “is he a guy anyone would trade for at the deadline”.

Getz did say he wanted an OF.

You can't write this post about salary dumping without noting the salary they're trying to dump.