Lillian

Is Eloy destined to become the youngest perennial DH, in the history of Baseball? On the other hand, if hitting is the source of his knee problems, then we're really in trouble. Has anyone confirmed that it's his knee, or could it be something else?

Gavin Sheets is really on a tear!!! Let's hope that he has really figured it out. He could be a big part of this rebuild. Do I have to say it? Shhhh..... A left handed, middle of the order bat.

Perhaps the most interesting area is the outfield. Looking ahead to the next decade, there are several legitimate CF prospects, headed by Robert. Basabe, Walker, Gonzales. Booker and even Cordell, although he's nearing the end of prospect age. They all possess the tools to play CF. RF will have several options, with Adolfo being the best suited, given his arm. Rutherford is probably the #1 candidate for LF, and a left handed bat, which you all know, I covet. Notice that I left Eloy out of the outfield equation. I still feel that with all of the outfield talent, which the Sox have assembled, most of which is also defensively pretty good, that Jimenez will end up at first base. I'm not suggesting that he needs to move there, but it just seems to me to be likely. As he fills out, he will likely become a little too slow and lumbering to play good outfield defense, in fact, I understand that he really isn't very good now. One impact of all of that outfield talent is that I don't expect to see Tilson, Engel, or even Avi as part of the future, when this team is ready to contend, providing of course, that at least a few of these prospects realize their potential. My expectation for Avi is that he will play out his pre free agent status and then move on. It's hard to imagine that they would give him a big contract, with the pipeline full of all of that promising, inexpensive talent. it's a shame that he lost so much playing time, which has all but eliminated the prospect of being able to be dealt, for a anyone of value. Providing Avi has played well, leading up to the end of next year, why not make him a qualifying offer, for one year and let him stay? If he accepts, that would provide one more year for the youngsters to develop, and postpone their service time. If he declines, the Sox get another decent Draft pick. Gavin Sheets is the wild card, in this scenario. If he develops and can provide a middle of the order, left handed bat, that would eliminate the possibility of Eloy playing first base. Who knows, if enough of these youngsters pan out, Eloy may be destined to become a DH. I understand that it would be very unusual for a young star to be relegated to DH'ing, but in this case, it's conceivable. Then too, there is the question of whether or not Burger can recover enough to play 3RD. If not, he may need to move to first, or maybe even DH. In any event, it's very intriguing to think of all that potential, without having to pencil in huge free agent, long term contracts. I don't ever remember a time, in all of the years that I have followed the Sox, when they had so many youngsters, about whom a fan could be hopeful. Maybe they will end up trading some of that excess outfield talent, in order to fill other holes. Although, if things go right, there might not be too many holes to fill. Oh well, we can dream, can't we? Hey, given this season, dreams are about all we have.

It's worth differentiating between results and the approach. Perhaps some of us would be more patient, if we saw him trying to have a better approach. Again, contrast what he is doing, with Anderson's recent performance. While Tim is still hitting for power, he is also taking a lot of those outside pitches to right field. That is the kind of approach, which I am hoping to see with Moncada.

While some of the comments are full of hyperbole, there is justifiably some concern. The question regarding the viability of him remaining a switch hitter, is certainly valid. My hope that he could become a Henderson/Raines type Super Lead off hitter is quickly evaporating. If he is going to stubbornly stick to this "3 outcome" approach, he is better suited as a middle of the order hitter. That's not the end of the world, but it certainly diminishes the use of his talent.

Well, gentlemen, interesting discussion. Thank you for the input. We'll just have to wait an see.

I'm not suggesting that he try to become a slap hitter. When there is a pitch, which he can pull and drive, that's a great approach. However, the more he insists upon doing exclusively that, the fewer such pitches he is likely to see. For example, if a pitcher pitches him away. it's so much more effective to simply hit the ball to the other side, especially when the defense has employed a shift.

You may be correct, but if so, that would indeed be a shame. He has too much speed and talent, to relegate himself to that kind of hitter.

I don't think that anyone is suggesting that he try to make a "mid swing adjustment". My point is that a hitter is not best served by swinging exactly the same way, within the same swing plane, regardless of the situation, the location of the pitch, or any other variable factor. One relevant example would be trying to pull an outside pitch. It's far more effective to take an outside pitch the other way, which often dictates a "hands before the barrel of the bat" swing. Anderson seems to have figured that out. Moncada may have a "pretty swing," but the results can be "ugly" when the bat doesn't barrel up the ball.

"Robotic" is precisely what I meant. Unless he makes adjustments, it will only get worse, as more and more pitchers begin to exploit that flaw, by pitching him away from the "robotic" swing. As gratifying as it is to see Anderson discovering how effective he can be, taking pitches to the opposite field, it's that frustrating watching Moncada refusing to do so.

Moncada is virtually worthless, as a RH hitter and from the left side I see two major problems: First; he has one swing, regardless of the count or the situation. Secondly, he takes way too many pitches, with 2 strikes. Hopefully, he will learn and make adjustments.

Pardon my ignorance, but how is it allowable for an infielder to block the bag, when a runner is attempting a steal?

In contrast to some of the other teams, which are in the "race to the bottom," the Sox have few contributing assets, which will be traded, at the deadline. Moreover, they have just gotten back Rodon and the 'Garcias'. The improvement in the lineup, coupled with the continuing development of the young guys, and oh yes, a surprisingly decent bullpen, could surprise a lot of people. If they trade both Soria and Shields, it may depend upon how well their replacements do. Nevertheless, I wouldn't be surprised if this team played .500 baseball, the rest of the way. That would leave them with a final record, 23 games below .500. 68 wins would not put them in a great position for the Draft, but it would be fun to watch and would hopefully start to create a winning culture, for this young core. Frankly, I'm more concerned about how well our current crop of prospects progress, than I am about the potential for another couple of top Draft picks. I'd be satisfied, if they end up picking in the top 7 or 8.

Ptatc, it does seem that most of these Tommy John Surgeries are being performed on young pitchers. I can't recall that many veteran hurlers, requiring this procedure. It would be interesting to see a statistic, which could provide the factual evidence.

Are any of you watching the OSU game?

Interesting points. Your explanation poses a dilemma. Some argue that the younger pitcher, with less "wear and tear" on his arm, is a safer bet to stay healthy, at least for the near term. Perhaps that assumption should be weighed against your assertion that pitchers who survive their earlier years, as a pro, may have a higher probability of avoiding these kinds of injuries, given their history of staying healthy.

Some of you might enjoy reading this summary of last night's offensive onslaught by the Dash, highlighting Laz Rivera's huge night. This guy is really intriguing. He wasn't highly touted, but his entire career, including his college and junior college days, is very impressive. I remember listening to Hostetler rave about him, last month. https://www.milb.com/milb/news/laz-rivera-paces-winston-salem-dash-with-career-night-at-playte/c-282919428 This is a very good scouting report, including good video: http://baseballcensus.com/2017/12/20/chicago-white-sox-laz-rivera-scouting-report-baseball-player-evaluation-video-december-2017/

I've been following the Sox for 66 years, and I remember seeing a lot of the same pitchers, in each era. Very few of them blew out their arms. It's only anecdotal and I can't provide any statistics. I just remember that it wasn't something that a fan worried about. You could pretty much count on a guy to make his starts and go late into the game. If today's pitchers didn't have TJS available, it seems half of them would be out of the game, and early in their careers. I don't have an explanation and I don't know what they are doing, but someone should seriously consider changing the current approach to pitching. I doubt that the fastball is the culprit. It seems more likely that it's trying to throw some of the breaking pitches, with the lower seams. That is what puts more strain on the elbow. Fastballs and change ups are the two best pitches in baseball, especially when effectively combined. The change of speed, with a deceptive motion, is still the most effective way to get batters out. That and location is more important than throwing curveballs, sliders and maybe even cutters. To that point, which of those breaking pitches puts the most stress on the elbow?

Maybe the medical profession needs to improve the TJ surgery and give pitchers some kind of "bionic arm". Then, every prospect could just have the procedure, before going pro. Seriously, it is getting out of hand. This was never anywhere near as prevalent, back when pitchers threw more often and many more pitches, per outing. Imagine how many guys would be out of the game, if it weren't for Tommy John Surgery, which didn't even exist, back then.

I couldn't agree more with your observation. He has taken so many pitches, just outside the strike zone, which could have been hit to the opposite field. It's frustrating to watch, particularly when he has 2 strikes and when teams employ the shift, in their defensive alignment. I understand that he is not unique, but it is nevertheless frustrating. Being a pull hitter is fine, but being "pull happy," as you call it, plays right into the opposition's strategy of pitching hitters away, and using the shift. He could be so much more productive if he exploited the shift, and just took the outside pitch to left field. Moreover, trying to pull an outside pitch, most often results in a weak ground ball. This entire approach is one of my pet peeves. I guess I'm just "old school".

Wow, was that ever prophetic!! "Tomorrow" we witnessed his biggest day at the plate, in his short career. A bases clearing double and then a 3 run homer is indeed a pretty nice "change".

Thanks Fathom, but it still doesn't confirm anything, definitive. I suppose that we will get an official report, today.

It's not even mentioned in the "recap" of the game, on the Baron's website. This is all that this normally good source had to say about it, an hour ago: https://twitter.com/CST_soxvan

Why can't I find any official "report," regarding Dunning's injury?

I was going to ask the same question, which "Donaldo" asked: How good is he defensively? How is his arm, in terms of both strength and accuracy? He has played CF, more than any other outfield position. Does he get good reads and take good routes? Or, perhaps he has simply gotten by, because of his speed. In reading more about him, apparently he made some pretty significant adjustments with his swing and approach, over the winter. Given his age, he'll turn 25 in November, I'd like to see him fast tracked, in an effort to see what the Sox really have, in him. The Best CF candidates, in the organization are Robert and Basabe, but they are both probably too young to be counted upon, for a couple more years. Could Booker provide an alternative to Engel, Cordell and Leury, as early as next season? He has been pretty consistent, all year, and this promotion to AA is off to a fantastic start. I'm intrigued!!!!