spiderman

The next time Steve Roosenbloom has a positive thought about anything will be a revelation. I get the guy has made a career of being the cranky, funny, writer, but most of what I see (or hear from him) is just all negativity all the time. Does he like anything?

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Jan 26, 2014 -> 06:37 PM) As things stand, best 2015 lineup: CF Eaton 2B Semien RF Garcia 1B Abreu DH Viciedo 3B Davidson C Nieto SS Leury LF Johnson (really pushing it here) Not a lot of power there though. And if Beckham FINALLY comes though (how long have we been saying this?) then things change considerably. And man would Castro look GREAT in there somewhere. There's a lot of outs in that lineup! Obviously, young guys can surprise, but expect growing pains with this lineup

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 1, 2014 -> 10:04 PM) Who would you trade to get that player? Alexei Ramirez? Rienzo? Nate Jones. DeAza alone probably isn't going to net that type of player. I agree, that's why I said it probably isn't going to happen this off-season, they have cashed in their chips to make the moves they have. They can get a piece for De Aza, just don't think it will be some top 100 prospect.

I'd be surprised if they add a catcher outside the organization with any significant potential upside. I don't rule out a trade for a catcher, just don't know that they land anyone who makes the fan base feel better about the position. De Aza is probably going to get moved before spring training, but i don't know what sort of value he has - maybe he lands them a catcher of some ability, but outside of that, I think most of their moves have been made - adding some arms for spring training competition, landing some young talent to help immediately in CF, 1B and 3B. I'd love to find another young offensive player who is similar to Davidson (top 100), but doubt that happens this winter.

Who is JR Murphy?

QUOTE (flavum @ Dec 21, 2013 -> 11:25 AM) Choo to the Rangers. A 7 year deal? Who are they competing against for Choo? Maybe Seattle/Cincinnati, etc. were all in on this, but my first thought is that Texas got a really good player for the first 3 or so years.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Dec 19, 2013 -> 04:33 PM) 11 minutes needed to repeat yourself? Um, ok. Maybe it's doubly important?

There's just too many young players who have to pan out, and it's probably not realistic to expect all of them too. Some won't be quite ready, some will meet expectations, but even the ones who do are still developing into what they hopefully will become. From a pitching perspective, they have enough to compete right now, assuming they have a closer on the roster to finish off what should be some lower scoring games. They have a top 5 Starting pitcher, and Danks would have to step up into what they thought they were getting prior to his arm injury. Overall, it's just a young offense though, and I think that will be the main culprit.

I had thought the theme of the Yankees off-season would be able to get under the luxury tax - was that just wrong, or does signing McCann / Elisbury / Cain somehow still work?

Even if he wants to come back, they are handicapping the roster by keeping 3 1B/DH's. One of these guys is strictly a pinch hitter most days, and that's probably Konerko at this point of his career although I realize it can be argued that new guy may be protected against tough matchups, and Dunn still goes into his funks where having an alternative isn't a bad option. While these aren't awful explanations, I do think roster flexibility can't be the loser especially if they are a team that is dependent on strong starting pitching and lower scoring games where defense comes into focus.

He's not coming back. They don't need 3 1B/DH types on the roster.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Sep 30, 2013 -> 01:54 PM) Completely agree with this. Although I see Viciedo improving with the right hitting coach the most. He's still only 23 and has raw talent is still there. Yes I know the power numbers weren't there, and doesn't walk often but he still hit 266. Next year if he can hit 265 with 25 HRs and 80 RBIs that would be great. And I could see Sox trading Beckham so Semein could start at 2B. Viciedo probably has one more year to show he can play in the majors as a regular. Another hitter though who doesn't walk so that's a problem. It's hard to have too much hope for a lineup that has so many easy outs (C, 1B, 2B, 3B, LF and Dunn's .217 average). Garcia is exciting and that's going to be fun, but what is else is there? Simeon may be a player, but would he be a prospect in any other system? I don't know. I do sort of expect the White Sox to be creative and move one of their starting pitching for another young hitting prospect who can be in the lineup next season.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Sep 30, 2013 -> 02:15 PM) If Keppinger could hit again in a true platoon, third base wouldn't be a problem They need to keep Keppenger in his utility role although giving a multi-year deal to a platoon/utility player is pretty dumb. In Keppinger's case, he doesn't hit enough to off-set his inability to get on base by a walk. Realistically, the White Sox are not likely to spend big money on any free agent unless they are playing poker right now are getting ready to shock everyone. They will probably make a series of smaller moves, some will work out/other's won't and that probably means Keppinger, assuming health, plays 120 games next season.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Sep 30, 2013 -> 01:45 PM) Most obvious move ever is signing McCann How old is McCain? How many years would be smart for a catcher? I'm hesitant to go crazy on a catcher, I'm more in the camp of signing somebody who can play defense.

Were there any deals/discounted tickets for this Saturday's game? I thought I had heard something about highly discounted tickets, but can't find anything anywhere other than what people have on Stubhub. Anything know of any promo code / deals for this Saturday?

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Sep 22, 2013 -> 02:34 PM) Johnson 6.2 IP 2R vs. The Tigers. Solid. It's been said around here often, but the rotation, with Johnson doing a nice job here in the last month of the season, looks very solid for next season. Obviously, there are no guarantees that this will hold up, and questions remain about pretty much in the rotation (not about Sale's stuff, but more durability). I don't want the White Sox to go on an off-season spending spree, but would love another chance at landing another Garcia type from another club, but not sure how they do that without moving a Quintana type. 1) Chris Sale 2) Jose Quintana 3) John Danks 4) Hector Santiago 5) Erik Johnson

I'm assuming that the White Sox aren't paying any of Peavy's salary ?

I haven't followed Middlebrooks, but wasn't he sent back to the minors for not performing this season?

QUOTE (Soxfest @ Jul 28, 2013 -> 10:17 PM) •The White Sox have shown no interest in absorbing any of the approximately $24MM owed Peavy and that, along with health concerns, are big issues for the Braves. Per Mlb rumors I think the consensus will be the White Sox didn't get enough back for Peavy (although that's probably the case for most trades when young/unknown talent is acquired). What are we thinking though as terms of adequate return - 1 top 10 talent in a minor league system? 2 in the top 15? 2 in the top 10? More? Less?

I think many are going to be let down by the return for Rios, should the Sox move him. It's not for a lack of trying, but the Sox have to be willing to pay quite a bit of that money to get a better return.

3-1 count, swing at ball 4, and then pop out in the OF. Horrible 2nd inning AB by Keppinger.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Apr 14, 2013 -> 10:46 AM) There are only three players on the current roster who are important to a rebuild. Sale, Quintana, and Santiago. Danks is fourth on the list because of his contract. Realize Viciedo is a bust, keep Konerko through a rebuild if you want, doesn't matter and do with the rest of the roster what you will. Deal by deadline: Peavy, Rios, De Aza, Floyd, Reed, Crain. I don't think Quintana and Santiago are anything more than parts. Yes, both may have solid/good future's, and cheaper priced guys are needed to balance the payroll, so in no means, am I saying that they should be traded, but I'm cautious to say that these are building blocks either. If the White Sox tank, everyone outside of Chris Sale are up for discussion, and I probably would be willing to deal guys like Peavy/Rios on a team going nowhere if (espeically in Peavy's case) if they can bring back 1 or 2 minor league prospects who can contribute in 2014 while at the same time, freeing up payroll. Let's face it - the minor league system's lack of talent is eventually going to catch up to an aging major league roster, and free agency shouldn't be a primary method of acuiring talent. If the Sox were to tank this season, think of it as more of a chance to get Santiago in the rotation so that next season, the rotation remains fairly solid with Sale/Danks/Quintana/Santiago and some other minor league option. Offensively is where the Sox need to start adding young pieces who can get on base, and it may take guys like Peavy/Floyd/Rios to do that.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Apr 11, 2013 -> 07:53 AM) They've also faced Shields, Felix, Iwakuma, Gonzalez, and Zimmerman, as well as Jeremy Guthrie who may as well be Christy Mathewson against the White Sox. They've faced some really, really good pitching. The fact that they're 4-4 is, quite frankly, a surprise in its own right. That is a good point although 2 of the 3 teams that they have played (although the Royals have dominated the White Sox and many like them as a sleeper) our teams that most people on this board probably see as inferior to the White Sox. Also, in 8 or 9 games, every team has seen a #1 or #2 now in about half of those games, although the quality of some team's top starters in not always high.

QUOTE (flavum @ Apr 11, 2013 -> 07:49 AM) I'll give you that. But the fear that this team just makes too many outs to be a serious contender haven't been disproved yet. I like to evaluate the team every 27 games. We'll see where we are at the end of the month. Over the course of a season, though, there are too many hitters (Viceido, Keppinger, Ramirez, Beckham and Flowers) who just aren't likely to get on base as much as the offense will need to to operate without being overly dependent on home runs, which this team will certainly hit a good share of. There are older players as well in this lineup (Konerko, Dunn) who may begin a slow decline so I think there's a ton of pressure on the pitching staff to hold opposing teams down. Barring health issues, I do expect the top 3 (Sale, Peavy and Floyd) do hold up with some blemishes, but the bottom of that rotation could be a gas can. It's hard for me to see how this team out-performs last year's without unexpected play from some of the offense and the backend of the pitching staff surprising me (I do like the bullpen a lot). I see this team finishing somewhere in the 80 win area.

QUOTE (SOXOBAMA @ Jan 19, 2013 -> 05:56 PM) Our pen looks very solid. The pitching staff, barring any other moves, is pretty much set. S1: Chris Sale S2: Jake Peavy S3: Gavin Floyd S4: John Danks S5: Jose Quintana S6: Hector Santiago Closer - Addison Reed Setup - Matt Thornton and Jessie Crain Middle Innings - Matt Lindstrom and Nate Jones Lefty Specialist - Donny Veal It's possible that Hector Santiago could also end up in the bullpen, but that could depend on the health of John Danks. Santiago has a lot of value and importance on this roster. As mentioned, he could be Danks' fill-in to open the season. If Danks is ready out of the gate, the White Sox still have to watch his innings as well as everyone else on that staff. Outside of Floyd (who did have his own issues last season), there's a cause of concern for everyone. I don't think they open with a 6 man rotation, but we could see it at times during the season or at least Santiago maybe giving a starter an extra turn of rest. As for the bullpen, there's probably 1 spot left, and it's probably another long reliever type. Lindstrom and Jones are both possible setup guys as well, so a very deep pitching staff is the obvious strength on this team