Lillian

Escobar will be a free agent and is therefore strictly a rental.

Exactly. I wish more fans would remember that.

I agree, and if Elijah could be become half the player that Jr. is, it would be a great signing. However, I would still find it interesting to know when Sr. made that statement. After all, if he thought that Elijah had more talent, before he himself realized that Jr. was to become a phenom, the statement would be far less impressive.

When did Tatis Sr. state that? I assume that it was before Jr. became a super star.

Maybe Engel will take Goodwin's place, as soon as the RH pitcher exits and Hinch goes to his bullpen. LH hitters are batting .303 off Ureña. Good day to give Goodwin a start. It is odd that La Russa prefers Lamb in LF and Leury at 3RD. You would think that it would be the reverse. Oh well, I'm sure that Mr. HOF manager has a reason.

If Pilkington and Bilous would be enough, would you make that trade? I think I would, in a heartbeat.

I'm onboard for that plan. Two LH power bats always sound good to me. LOL. Moreover, what it would take to acquire both of them, would probably surprise many. Rentals don't cost what they used to. Arizona would save what's left of Kole's $8 million for this year, plus that $2 million dollar buy out. They also would save what's left of Escobar's $7.5 million. The Diamondbacks aren't going anywhere this year so whatever money they can save and whomever they can get back, in trades, is probably appealing to them. Would Stiever and Luis Gonzalez be enough? They are the Sox' number 4 and number 10 MLB Pipeline prospects, respectively. Both of those prospect rankings sound better than the actual value of the players. I don't consider either one of them as important pieces, going forward. That's just my assessment, as a fan.

Yes, the DH is not hitting for enough power, as are several other guys. However, those are not the guys who are injured. The Sox need to add someone and the most obvious acquisition is a second baseman, to replace Madrigal. As I previously suggested, Escobar would fill the need at second, as well as adding thunder to the lineup, from both sides of the plate. If you can find a LH power bat, to play RF that's fine. However, then you have to sit Eaton. I'm ok with replacing Eaton in RF, but the more plausible solution is someone like Escobar at second. I suspect that Lamb is going to get more playing time in RF, especially if Eaton continues to be hobbled and to struggle at the plate.

Again, I agree with this assessment. Mendick is a serviceable bench player. However, after having lost 3 starters and with World Series aspirations, replacement level production is probably not good enough. There are better options available on the trade market and I'm confident that Hahn will bring is a player who will be better than replacement level. The Sox are winning a lot of close games and luck seems to be favouring them. But luck can suddenly change. The dramatic drop in home run production is eventually going to take a toll. With warm weather approaching, the ball will be flying out of Guaranteed Rate Park, and although this current roster should begin to hit more long balls, there are a lot of teams that appear to have more power. Without Eloy and Robert, this is a chance to add some power. Replacing Madrigal with guys like Leury and Mendick is not the way to go "all in" on a shot at a title. It would be a real shame to waste the best rotation the Sox have had, since 2005, by not acquiring the pieces needed to maintain their terrific start.

I don't know how this ended up as a new thread. My intention was to merely post it in the thread on potential trade targets to replace Madrigal. At any rate, I still would prefer Escobar, as I would guess that the cost would be too high for Frazier.

NBC Sports Chicago just put up a podcast. They cited a rumor from Jim Bowden, which has Adam Frazier as a target.

I agree, as this is exactly what I've been suggesting. All this talk about getting someone with more years of control, make little sense to me. Madrigal will be back next year, at the latest, and he is our second baseman, going forward. Despite all of the negative comments about a rental, that seems to be precisely what the Sox need. Moreover, a rental should be much less costly.

Going forward, after everyone is healthy, the only hole in this team's roster of position players is RF. Therefore, a rental makes the most sense to me. Given the Diamondbacks' position and the existing relationship with La Russa, my guess is that Escobar would be a realistic acquisition. He's in the final year of a 3 year contract, and is owed the balance of his $7.5 million dollar 2021 salary. It probably would not take any top prospects to acquire him. He could provide power from both sides of the plate, as well as solid defense at 2ND base. That's my hunch.

Both Peralta and Marte would fit, and now that Madrigal may be out for a while, Escobar is also an interesting potential target, from the D Backs. Any of them would help from the left side.

That rule is so stupid and poorly conceived that it will almost certainly have to be repealed. It is going to lead to havoc on the base paths. Even slower runners will be able to steal bases, once the pitcher is no longer permitted to throw to 1ST base.

Oh yes, I see the Teal. I didn't notice the color, until I took a better look.

I assume that was tongue in cheek. It's pretty obvious what he's doing.

I was watching Hendriks today. He does indeed go to a shiny spot, on the back of his cap, especially just before he throws the slider.

Hendriks goes to the back of his cap, quite often. Perhaps it's just before he throws that nasty slider. Having his effectiveness significantly diminished would be very costly. Yikes!! Let's hope not. The pen has been shaky enough, even with a dominant closer.

That's right. Good point. Who knows who and how this crackdown will have an effect?

Batting 3RD, and right in front of Abreu, significantly diminishes the value of stealing second. Too often, that would result in opposing pitchers electing to pitch around Abreu, with first base open. Moreover, given Jose's tendency to swing at pitches out of the zone, it would make it easier for pitchers to risk putting him on, while hoping that Jose gets himself out. Odd as it may sound, it might actually be better for Moncada to be at first, rather than in scoring position, at second.

I love that suggestion. Iglesias will be a free agent, at the end of the season. What do you think it would take to acquire him, at the trade deadline?

I thought that perhaps this topic needed its own thread. What was considered to be a major strength of this roster, has turned out to be a bit of a problem. Kopech, Crochet and Hendriks have been fine, but the rest of the pen has been very inconsistent. Fry has already begun his rehab assignment at Charlotte and Kopech should be back soon. Bummer has such great stuff that it seems reasonable to expect him to get back on track. Nevertheless, the Sox probably need to add one more arm. If not, they may have to forget about trying to get Kopech stretched out, in order to be available to start, later in the season. Fortunately, the starters have been good enough that Kopech may not be needed. He may provide more value to this team, as a reliever. Could Burdi and, or Burr help? If there are any arms that might be acquired, in a trade deadline move, please suggest them in this thread.

Who else, besides Karinchak, on Cleveland's staff is likely using something?

Turnbull has actually been better vs. LH batters. Nevertheless, we should expect La Russa to use several LH hitters tonight. Lamb should get another start and Sheets may have his MLB debut.