Lillian

I agree. Moreover, he isn't going to sign a one year deal, to be platooned. He wouldn't have much of an opportunity to improve his stock, batting exclusively against left handed pitching.

He actually hit pretty well in 2018, while playing third base. Last year, he moved back to his natural position, where the same offensive numbers, combined with his Gold Glove defense, at the keystone position would have been fine. However, for some reason his XBH production just vanished, which is odd considering the juiced ball. I suspect that some team will take a chance on him, in hopes that he can rediscover his ability to at least be a gap hitter. In any case, his contract will likely not earn him what he was due to receive in arbitration.

Being a pitcher, do you think that Keuchel will be immune to any culpability in this ongoing story?

It would be interesting to see some you compare the various respective parts of the 2 pitching staffs. I would think that the Sox have the distinct advantage, in terms of quality, depth and potential.

Exactly, apparently their front office does not embrace the old adage that says "pitching wins championships".

Your point is well taken. Nevertheless, for those who haven't watched a given team, or player, on a daily basis, this kind of data can be very useful. Our eyes tell us that Bummer was terrific, last season and we don't really need to examine all of the stats to recognise that fact. However, not having had the benefit of seeing Cishek pitch, very much, these stats are helpful in at least determining whether, or not, we should be pleased about his acquisition.

Thank you. That is very interesting and useful statistical data. I've never seen that.

Yes, of course the percentage of inherited runners, who scored is also very important. Last year, he allowed 33% of the 27 inherited runners to score. In that category, Bummer was better, allowing just 19% of the 36 inherited runners, to score. Cishek was better, in 2018, when he allowed 29% of the 59 inherited runners to score. I think we agree that he was overworked, the last couple of years, by Maddon. Inherited runners are not much of a concern for closers, as they are usually brought in, to start the last inning. Thanks for suggesting that I cite those stats, as well.

Won't Ryan Burr be a part of the pen's equation, once he is finished with his rehab, for TJS? The Sox re-signed him, last month.

I thought that the other procedure was arthroscopic surgery to "clean up his shoulder," from which he seemed to have completely recovered. Here is a quote, from MLB.com, at the time: "Significant bursitis was found in the White Sox southpaw's shoulder and a debridement of the area was done. Both the rotator cuff and labrum were viewed as normal, and Rodon is expected to make a full recovery."

Is there some specific reason that we should be especially concerned about Rodon's ability to completely recover from Tommy John Surgery?

Even more revealing than the splits, if you examine his "game logs" for last year, you will find that he rarely gave up any runs. There were just a few occasions where he was not effective, but the vast majority of the time, he was lights out. April was his worst month. He made 13 appearances and gave up no runs in 11 of them. However, on 2 occasions, he gave up 3 runs, in each. In total, he made 70 appearances and was unscored upon in all but 13 of them. Aaron Bummer was also scored upon 13 times, in 12 fewer appearances, and he had a terrific season. From my perspective, if a reliever can come in and not give up anything, 82% of the time, I'll take that. In Cishek's 5 previous seasons, his WHIP was right around 1.000. Last year it ballooned up to 1.203. Hopefully, he won't be overused in our pen, as he was the last 2 years.

They now have 4 excellent candidates for the 8TH inning; Bummer, Herrera, Colome and Cichek. A lights out closer could still be worth while. However, it would have to be via a trade, as there aren't any available, in free agency. The other possibility is to try Bummer as the closer, in which case they probably need another lefty, as Fry is the only other southpaw bullpen arm and I have lost confidence in him, after last season.

I could not agree more. This has been my contention, from the beginning, providing that he is willing to contribute in that limited capacity.

I'm not sure that I understand the rule, regarding the signing of a Minor League free agent. Could you please clarify exactly what the Sox would need to do, in order to keep Fernandez in the organization?

This acquisition of Fernandez could simply be about organizational depth. McCann will likely be gone by 2021, at the latest. Having a solid defensive catcher in the system, makes sense. It's premature to read much more into this move. We'll see. Has this move even been officially reported? I can't seem to find anything, to confirm it.

He elected to become a free agent. He was in their Minor League system a long time, having signed very young. The Royals organization is also pretty deep at the catching position. I find this signing to be a little reassuring, as the other catchers in the Sox' organization are all defensively challenged. Neither Mercedes, nor Zavala are ready to catch in the Big Leagues and many have their doubts about Collins. From the inception of this discussion about McCann, I have asserted that the possibility of Collins being thrust into the full time catching role, in the event of an injury to Grandal, was a major reason to hang onto McCann.

This move may, or may not signal that McCann is being moved, but they now have a solid defensive catcher, in the system to provide some insurance, in the event that Grandal is injured. Here is a quote from a September, 2018 article, on a Royals' site: "I think Fernandez could have been a backup catcher in the bigs during this season. His defense is outstanding. Fernandez blocks well and is a tremendous receiver with soft hands that frame well. As far as throwing, he has gunned down minor league runners at a 39% pace in his career and 41% this season in NWA. His throws are low, on the money, and carry well. Of all the catchers I’ve seen at NWA this season, he is the best overall. Fernandez’s bat seems to have developed this year and he is hitting .328/.382/.504 at NWA. I’ve always heard it said that RBI and hits are found on the opposite side of the field. Fernandez seems to have figured that out hitting 37.5% of pitches the other way in NWA. His pull rate is the lowest in his career at just 32.7%. For reference, his previous low for pull rate was 37.1%. Now, this is somewhat of a small sample size alert because he has only 131 plate appearances in NWA. Fernandez is carrying a .328 batting average with a .360 BABIP which suggests that he isn’t getting lucky and perhaps has more luck on his side in the future. Looking deeper into Fernandez’s bat we find a 7.6% BB rate compared to a 13.0% K rate this year at NWA. Over the course of his career, Fernandez’s walk rate is 7.7% and the strikeout rate is 13.3%. This year is a little better than his career norms on both accounts. A couple of other telling numbers are his ISO at .176 and wRC+ which is 138. Both those numbers are from this year at NWA which is a little more of a hitter’s park." I also found this, from last October: "The Royals drafted him in the 11th round in 2013, so he’s been in the organization awhile. He’s a very good receiver and looks to be a very good framer, so he definitely has the tools to be a backup catcher. He’s come around offensively to find himself firmly in the backup catcher conversation next year."

Having a Gold Glove second baseman, such as Yolmer, is more about depth, to cover potential injuries, than it is about late inning substitutions. If Madrigal succeeds, there is obviously no point in ever pulling him, for defensive purposes, in that he is a Gold Glove defender, himself. However, if Madrigal were to get hurt and have to miss any significant time, Sanchez would be a nice fall back option, especially with all of the offensive thunder, now in the lineup. HIs offensive deficiencies could easily be hidden in a deep lineup. The problem is what do you do with Sanchez, in the meantime? He really has no place to play, unless Moncada, or Madrigal are injured. He would just be riding the bench and driving his teammates crazy, with his antics. LOL.

Holt isn't much of a defender, is he? I doubt that he is any where near a gold glove second baseman.

Right, and remember we'll need him rested for all of those Post Season games. How's that for positive thinking? LOL. Seriously, 40 games of rest, would be reasonable. 50 days off might be excessive.

OK. It's not an issue for me, but was rather just an assumption, on my part. McCann's numbers vs. LHP were very good, last season, in 122 at bats: 295 .372 .492 .864

I would think that giving McCann all of the starts vs. lefties, wouldn't be more than the normal load for the 2ND catcher. How many starts to you expect Grandal to get, behind the plate? He started 110 games, as catcher in 2018 and 124 behind the plate, last year. Keeping Grandal fresh and rested should help him. Why wear him out, when the Sox have McCann there to spell him games?

McCann should certainly get all of the starts vs. LH pitching. His splits were terrific vs. lefties and Grandal is just average when batting right handed.

I agree with you and that has been my position, since the Grandal signing. However, I sure wouldn't want a disgruntled guy on the bench, especially since his role as mentor is one of the main objectives in keeping him.