Lillian

OK. You convinced me. Good Night.

Because the person might have been given permission, but not to disclose who they are, or their source. At this point, no one can point a finger at anyone. Look at us. A few of us are speculating about who, and the rest of us think that's crazy. None of us know anything, just wild guesses. Again, complete plausible deniability. But again, the question is; Why do this?

LOL. Well, if it's a prankster, the prank is working. I'm not staying up all night. I'll just wait til the morning, and likely not be greeted with any "real" news.

Yes, but wouldn't that entail disclosing their identity? They wouldn't want to make this official. This way, it's totally unofficial and anonymous. Hell, I don't know. It is weird. If turns out to be true, then I will be very curious as to who this person is, which I suspect that we would never know.

I'm just trying to attach a motive to someone, regarding tweeting such a message. It's anonymous, so that pretty much negates the idea of an attention seeker. Why would someone do this, and who is the most likely author?

Setting aside all of the other factors, which would be part of any consideration for one of J. R's sons to tweet that, can you see how they might desire to anonymously and secretly provide some good news to the fan base?

Well, they aren't putting their name to it. That's just some of us speculating. They have complete plausible deniability.

I don't know. I was trying to figure that out. So what do you think? Is this some kid, playing a prank?

I wasn't referring to Jerry Reinsdorf, but rather one of his sons.

Tell us more. And, would it be permissible to disclose that? Also, would it be disadvantageous for the Sox?

I'm buying it and still think that this burner Twitter account is the Reinsdorfs. As I said earlier; perhaps Machado's team was trying to maximize the leverage of Sox Fest, knowing that the front office would have loved to have been able to answer all of the fans' questions about Manny, in the affirmative. Now that Sox Fest is over and the Sox didn't give in to Lozano's demands, I think Manny signs soon. The Pederson trade has other contingencies, as we have discussed, on both sides. My only question is; Would such a tweet be in violation of the CBA?

I'm surprised to hear that the new pitching philosophy does not like the sinker. What is the rationale behind that? I always considered it a very effective pitch, resulting in lots of ground balls. I remember when our family had our Atec Casey Pitching Machine, no one could ever square up sinkers. I'll have to Google this one, as I'm quite curious.

That the Sox didn't get Machado or Pederson,....YET. LOL

Perhaps the Machado camp thought that they could use Sox Fest as leverage to pressure the front office to up the offer, in time for the Fan Fest. Now that it's over, and the Sox didn't cave, maybe they will be more willing to come to terms.

Without violating the CBA rules, how difficult is it for the front office to verify a claim that some team has made an offer? Please don't tell me that Lozano can simply make up a story that the Padres have made an offer. There must be rules governing what the agents are allowed to do, as well as what ownership may do.

It wouldn't be "$70 to *$80 Million annually". Isn't it more likely $65 Million to $75 Million? Nevertheless, that is a lot, for just 2 players.

The kind of enthusiasm, which management would want to foster, is contagious. Being able to show excited fans, thrilling over the signing, would be much more effective at generating that kind of contagious enthusiasm, than some local reporters, many of whom are Cub fans, and national sports commentators, who constantly belittle and disparage our Sox. This is about optics and an attempt to get people excited. When exactly the rest of the baseball world discovers the news is less important than how it is reported. Interviewing the die hard fans, at Sox Fest, would be the most favorable manner, in which to disclose the news. "Wow, how exciting. I'd like to be a part of that".

Over the last 3 seasons, he has actually hit better at home, including more home runs, per plate appearance.

Someone please explain how my dream "conspiracy" could still be true, in light of this sobering word, from "Balta". Is it really all that implausible? Is there a way that the deal could be solidified, and still not have it published? Would postponing a pending physical, until after the announcement, lock in the player, without having it become official?

I don't know much about Twitter, but isn't this "burner account" likely to be someone other than the name he is using? Would it make sense for someone on the inside of the organization to do this? It isn't "official" because it's not coming from a verified source, but it stirs up the excitement. It wouldn't really spoil the dramatic effect of an announcement at Sox Fest, given the questionability of the source. However, it does keep the real die hard fan base ginned up. Someone pointed out that J. M. R. are the initials of the owner and one of his sons. Plus Michael is the name of another son. Very interesting. Putting all of the clues together, it just looks like today will be a big day. I'm buying the whole narrative. An announcement of the Machado signing and the Pederson trade, today at Sox Fest, with maximum publicity and social media frenzy. This is great fodder, for a "Conspiracy" nut, like me. Remember what Gore Vidal said; "I'm not a conspiracy theorist, I'm a conspiracy analyst". Oh, and I'm not wearing a "tin foil hat". As someone said; "We haven't used tin in years. It's aluminum".

"Close" Hell, I'm considering it a fait accompli. ?

Look at the career OBP's for the 3 new LH bats, versus RHP, which is dominant in our Division: Jon Jay .350 (His are actually better vs. LHP) Alonso. .346 Pederson. .355 You know me and my preference for LH hitters, especially now, with so few good southpaws in our Division. This would make me a very happy camper. LOL.

That would be the most logical move.

Yes, someone should platoon with Pederson. Those stats vs. LHP are awful.

Well, I'm going to run with this Pederson and Machado speculation and make out my lineup, versus RHP, with OBP being highlighted. That was one of the team's biggest weaknesses, so it merits the emphasis: CAREER OBP LAST YEAR PROJECTED (COMPOSITE OF STEAMER & ROTO CHAMP) 2B Moncada .319 .315 .323 CF Jon Jay .352 .330 .334 3B Machado .335 .367 .352 DH Abreu .353 .325 .339 1B Alonso .317 .336 .326 LF Jimenez .338 RF Pederson .339 .329 .339 C Castillo .318 .323* .296 SS Anderson .286 .281 .286 *LAST FULL SEASON If you factor in the OBP versus RHP, with the 3 new left handed hitters, and the numbers look even better. Now, add another #2 or #3 starter and 2019 could be fun.