Lillian

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.

I wasn't suggesting a "team friendly" contract, but rather an expensive, but shorter term deal than Heyward's.

I WAS THINKING SOMEONE BETTER THAN HEYWARD AND ONLY OWED A COUPLE OF YEARS.

Are there any decent hitting, good defensive center fielder veterans, whom are owed a lot of money, on teams which are not ready to compete? If there is someone who could replace Engel, until Robert is ready, for not much more than taking on a big contract, that might be preferable to trading for 2 years of Pederson. As long as they're not owed money beyond a couple of years, they might be a perfect 2 year rental.

It seems that several of us are taking this as a very positive indication. Does anyone disagree and, if so, why? For those who question how the signing could remain a secret, it appears that Alonso, Renteria, Roeper and a few more people, prove that it couldn't.

Renteria going public about the issues with Machado being resolved is perhaps the biggest hint that he is coming to the Sox. Rick said that Manny agreed to play wherever the team needed him and that they discussed the "Johnny Hustle" controversy, and indicated that it wouldn't be an issue. If he isn't going to be part of the team, why bother addressing these points, all of a sudden? He never discussed any of this, in the days following the meeting.

In this era of social media, such theatrics would be a great way to leverage the signing publicity. If some clever surprise announcement were to be staged at Sox Fest, and televised, it could "go viral" on the Internet.

"Ray Ray Run," "Southsider2K5" and the rest of you, who are participating in this discussion, regarding the possible trade for Pederson, I'd just like to commend you all for a very interesting and informative conversation. This is the kind of quality discourse, which makes this site so worthwhile. Very impressive, indeed. Thank you.

I didn't see any Alonso on the Mets' 40 Man Roster, and didn't think about a Minor Leaguer. Thanks

"Alonso 1B"? Do you know something that we don't?

Yes, but it wouldn't even require collusion. Both teams must realize that it is not in each of their interests to recklessly bid on both players, when they think that they are only going to be able to afford one. If the Phillies have targeted Harper, and the Sox have their focus on Machado, it makes sense to not escalate the market value, for either one, as each player will compare his deal, with the other. It wouldn't be necessary to discuss this between them, as it would be inherently understood.

One might ask why the Phillies would not go ahead and make an offer above the rumored Sox bid. The answer could be that, realizing they will not win a bidding war with the Sox, they believe that it is in their best interest to not have Manny's contract be so expensive that it would negatively impact their negotiations with Harper. Whatever Manny gets, Boras will demand more for Harper. The less he gets, the more that helps the Phillies in their negotiations with Harper.

I really hope that we are not going down the "Manny at SS" road again. His value is significantly diminished by his playing SS. Moreover, instead of filling a hole, that would leave the hole at 3RD and force Anderson to learn a new position. The infield defense would be stellar, with Machado at 3RD, T. A. at SS and either Moncada or Madrigal at 2ND. Why mess with that? If Machado is making that a condition, for signing, I would personally be ready to just move on. However, I really doubt that is the case. We all know that his earlier desire to play SS was likely for the purpose of increasing his value to suitors. If the case of the Sox, it decreases his value. Of course, there is also the possibility that he is using it as a ploy to raise the price, by suggesting that he will agree to play 3RD, if the Sox agree to increase the value of the contract.

What if the Dodgers are really trying to clear an OF spot for Harper, and the Pollock talk is just a ploy to throw off the Phillies? I doubt that they would be that determined to trade Pederson, in order to sign Pollock.

If it takes this rebuild until 2023 - 2024 to produce a contender, then I would have to agree that it has failed. Our best young core is arguably Moncada, Jimenez, Robert, Madrigal, Kopech, Lopez, Cease, Dunning, Anderson, Collins and whomever they select with the #3 pick, in this year's Draft. It is too early to assume anything, but it is being projected that they will take Andrew Vaughn. Here are the ages, for those players, in 2023: Moncada 28 Jimenez 27 Robert. 26 Madrigal. 26 Kopech 27 Lopez. 29 Cease 28 Dunning 29 Anderson 30 Collins 28 Vaughn. 25 Those guys should have established what kind of players they are going to be, earlier than those ages. There are very few outstanding prospects, in the organization, who are younger than these players, so it is likely that the rebuild will depend heavily on this core. The other names, such as Burdi, Rutherford, Basabe, Adolfo and Hansen are all in this same age group. Again, if they haven't figured it out until they are that old, then at least this phase of the rebuild will have indeed failed. We would be looking at guys approaching arbitration and would have to depend upon a whole new crop of prospects, or be prepared to spend some big money.

I have not watched Pederson play, very much, so I'm not qualified to render an opinion on his defense. I was reacting to the very negative defensive metrics that some of you pointed out. Regarding Palka, I understand that he is very unpolished in the outfield. However, there are two points which the scouting reports suggest, which contradict the assertion that he is slow and has a weak arm. He actually runs pretty well, for a big man and now at 15 pounds lighter, it will be interesting to see how he runs. He was a relief pitcher at Georgia Tech, with a fastball in the low 90's and has never had an arm or shoulder injury, so asserting that he has a "noodle arm," might be a little unfair. Could he learn to be a passable defender, at a corner outfield position? I don't know, but if so, his LH bat might be worth giving him more playing time. He is cheap and controllable for several more years, as he was only a rookie, last year.

If they acquired Pederson, I would assume that he would play a corner OF and Jay would be in CF. After seeing the really poor defensive metrics on Joc, I'm wondering if Palka might end up being just as good as he is. Palka has lost 15 pounds, has a good arm, and runs pretty well. I assume he now runs even better than last year, now that he is lighter. He has been working hard on his defense, and he might surprise us. In any case, Engel would be a good late inning defensive replacement. He could take over in CF, and Jay could move to the corner, to replace Palka.