Lillian

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Feb 22, 2018 -> 07:01 AM) What do you mean “month by month stats”? And I wasn’t arguing that Frazier was a better hitter. My point was that Frazier has the better track record and is coming off a comparable season (if not better) to Moose. The market deemed Todd to be worth 2/$17M. Sure, Moose deserves more money than Todd for several reasons (age being a major factor), but the question is how much more? Throw in losing a draft pick and I just don’t see Moustakas at a 5/$70M deal or so being such a steal. The fact no one has snagged him up yet is telling IMO. I have always found it useful to look at each month's production, in order to attempt to better assess a player's performance. For example; a hitter might be very productive, with the exception of one very bad month. Whether due to injury, extremely tough pitching, bad luck, or just a plain old slump, that month could significantly affect his overall season stats. Looking at Moustakas' month by month production, over the last 3 seasons, will reveal a pretty consistently good hitter, with power and a relatively low strike out rate. Take 2015, for example; Here are his month, by month AVG's: .356 .282 .299 .188 .281 .291. If you throw out that .188 in July, he was a pretty solid hitter. 2016 was a lost season, due to injury. However, he was fine, for the brief time that he played. So, looking at all of 2015 and last year, and taking out his worst month, in each of those years, his stats are generally pretty good. They aren't overwhelming, but they are good enough to represent a left handed presence, sandwiched somewhere between the heavily weighted right handed, middle of the order hitters. I hope that clarifies my point.

If you look at Moustakas' month, by month stats, over the last 3 years, you might decide that he is a better hitter than Todd Frazier has been, since coming to the A.L.

Just to clarify: I certainly do not think that Moustakas is a better player than Machado. However, I'm not sure that Machado is a better value, at $35 Million, per year, than Moustakas, at $12 Million per year. Those numbers are merely speculation, but they illustrate my point.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Feb 21, 2018 -> 09:42 AM) That would be a 55 team WAR if multiplied by 25. If that is what 25 average players gets you, let's get 25 average players. According to fangraphs, his wRC+ was 62nd. That's top 2 or 3 on a team. Yolmer Sanchez was 107. So by your post, Yolmer isn't the answer.. Manny Machado wasn't as good offensively as Moustakas last year. I am sure most of us will be doing cartwheels if the Sox give him $300 million plus in the next 10 months. I was just looking at Machado's split stats, as you posted this. Not only was his year not as productive as Moustakas', but he only hit 11 HR's, on the road, compared to Moose's 24. Baltimore is a much better park, in which to hit homers, than Kauffman Stadium. I suspect that Moustakas would put up some pretty good numbers, in Chicago.

QUOTE (fathom @ Feb 20, 2018 -> 06:51 PM) Does he still get to face WSox pitching? Well, his 6 homers, in 17 games, is very consistent with his overall road stats. He hit approximately one HR, per every 3 games played.

No one has commented on the fact that Moustakas had 24 HR's, in just 74 road games. KC is known as a park that is not conducive to the long ball. What would you expect him to hit, at Guaranteed Rate Field?

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Feb 20, 2018 -> 05:35 PM) Neither does Moustakas. He's a lefty, yes, but if he's in the middle of our lineup in 2020, that means it isn't a playoff-caliber lineup. Well, that's an interesting perspective. So, you don't think that a line, like his last year, would be adequate, sandwiched in between say Abreu and Jimenez, who would follow Moncada and Avi?

QUOTE (credezcrew24 @ Feb 20, 2018 -> 05:23 PM) Yeah if the Sox didn't have Yolmer Mous could make sense. I'd prefer Yolmer I love Yolmer. He's one of my favorite players. However, he does not fill the void, upon which I'm focusing.

If the top of the 2019 order is Moncada, Avi, Abreu and Eloy, and they perform up to expectations, I don't see the need to spend big, on another right handed bat. They may even get significant contributions from Anderson and Castillo, two more RH hitters. My argument is that they need a productive LH bat, more than they need a super star, right handed hitter. Maybe Collins, Gillaspie and, or Delmonico, will provide that LH presence, but I have my doubts as to whether any of them will become a clean up, or #5 hitter, in the order, on a contending Sox team. That is why I continue to argue for guys like Moustakas or Morrison.

QUOTE (Dam8610 @ Feb 20, 2018 -> 04:41 PM) If the White Sox can't afford the type of free agents that will actually supplement this rebuild, they might as well just give up now and say they're not planning on competing in the foreseeable future. I for one, am not asserting that the Sox "can't afford" to sign a free agent, who would complete the rebuild. However, if they are going to spend the kind of money required to sign Machado, I'd prefer B. Harper, who would provide that middle of the order, LH bat, along with a much better OBP.

QUOTE (Real @ Feb 20, 2018 -> 04:06 PM) Nice, Todd Frazier 2.0 He doesn't draw as many walks as Frazier, but he doesn't strike out nearly as much, either. And, of course, he hits left handed, which is why he appeals to me. Remember, his stats away from KC, were really impressive last year; 24 HR's, in 74 games.

I would prefer that they sign Moustakas to a 4, or 5 year deal, at approximately $12Million per year, than try, next year, to sign Machado to a 10 year deal, at $30 to 35 Million per year. Their future lineup is shaping up to not need a $350 Million, RH hitter.

Projected line up, vs RHP, for 2019: 2B Moncada LH LF Avi 1B Abreu 3B Moustakas LH RF Eloy C Castillo SS Anderson DH Delmonico LH CF Engel, Leury, Tilson?????? That line up could score a lot of runs and provide decent defense.

I would guess that the front office recognizes the same need, that I do, for a middle of the order, left handed bat. Moustakas fills that need, while providing adequate defense, at a position of need. It's not surprising that the Sox would be linked to him. With the exception of Moncada, the best hitters on this current roster, as well as the best two hitting prospects, are all right handed. Unless Delmonico, Gillaspie, or some other free agent, emerges as a productive LH bat, that will likely remain a significant hole, in the offense. There is also hope for Collins, but whether or not he will become a middle of the order producer, is a question mark. "Moose" provides a solution, without blocking anyone. Burger could always become a first baseman, or DH, if he develops quickly.

Another good showing for Beer, in Clemson's 2ND game of the year. Here's the Box Score: http://www.clemsontigers.com/pdf9/5467559....DB_OEM_ID=28500

QUOTE (daggins @ Feb 16, 2018 -> 04:55 PM) Beer hits a double in his first AB. Law seems to be extraordinarily high on him, he seems like a comp round guy. Here it is, with Beer's comments, in the audio:

Engel's appeal is not based solely upon his elite defense and athleticism. He is also very fast and possesses legitimate power. It's easy to understand why management might want to give him every opportunity to learn to hit. Whether, or not, he is able to accomplish that is very questionable, but I'm rooting for him. He is one of those guys who probably spent too much time playing another sport. Perhaps if he had concentrated more on baseball and less on football, he would be further along in his development, as a hitter.

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Feb 14, 2018 -> 12:47 PM) I know the Sox won't sign him but it's more for the draft pick and bonus money than him not being very good. I realize I am often stuck in the past because when you saw a .275 batting average 38 HRs 835 OPS . 521 Slg that always implied someone was pretty good. To see him constantly disparaged for his OBP and other deficiencies while he's made 2 All Stars teams in the past 3 years is sort of strange. If he's not considered good then I would like to take a poll of Sox fans and ask them if they would take his 2017 numbers at 3rd base when they are contending. Yea I know last year might be an outlier but he is in the old school prime of his career and if he's not good then some of the new things that we use to tell if a player is good or not devalue too many things. I truly love defense and his isn't that good I can give you that but if anyone thinks Yolmers D makes up for the fact he isn't a LH middle of the order bat like Moustakas then defense and OBP is extremely over rated in todays game and the reason why power hitter have been devalued also in todays game. . Exhibit A Jason Heyward. I'll take his offense and passable D at 3rd every time. His road stats, from last year, are even more impressive. 24 HR, in 74 games, suggests that he might be very productive in our ballpark.

You guys know me, so you won't be surprised by my question: Is there a left handed, middle of the order bat, somewhere in this discussion for a big free agent acquisition? Why not wait for Harper? He would fulfill that wish. Unless Avi and, or Abreu are traded, our middle of the order in 2019 will likely be composed of 3 right hitters; Avi, Eloy and Jose. A left handed bat, stuck somewhere in the middle, would be very helpful. Remember, I'm hoping for Moncada to emerge as a dynamic, Ricky Henderson type, lead off hitter.

Sorry if this question has already been answered, but I'd like to know whom most of you prefer, between De Sedas and Turing, if you wanted a H.S. SS?

I'm still hoping and rooting for Engel. His upside is much higher than the other candidates. I understand that he needs to make more contact, but he has the best tools. That Podcast, for which I provided the link, sounds very encouraging. Delmonico made a special point of mentioning how much he has improved, over the winter and how great he looks, in the batting cage. I'm really looking forward to seeing what adjustments he has made.

I think that you will all enjoy listening to the latest Sox Podcast, on CSN. Nicky Delmonico is very impressed with the strides made by Engel, during the offseason. He believes that we will all be pleasantly surprised by how he is going to hit. Very encouraging: https://art19.com/shows/white-sox-podcast/e...2b-0e26a9a8fa0f

How does this affect the possibility of the Sox trading him? He now has a very attractive contract, for this year, but it would be a little disloyal to trade him, now that he has agreed to take less than he could have gotten, in arbitration. I hope that he is extended, but just wondered about the implications of this year's contract.

His Home/Away & Vs. RHP/LHP Splits might provide a different perspective.

This is relevant: