scenario

I had a debate this week on a Twins board with a moderator (who for the most part is a pretty knowledgeable guy). He said he wasn't impressed with Alexei and felt that he "hadn't lived up to the hype". Hype?? When a guy gets a 4 year - $4M contract after working out for MLB teams... and the MLB scouting bureau gives him a 47 OFP - projecting him to be a utility player... where's the hype? Seems to me that given the relatively low scouting expectations (and money offers) that Alexei knocked it out of the park this year. One of the key points in our debate was whether there was a connection between hype and the size of contract offers. I said "yes... obviously... because hype draws suitors". He said "no... there is not a connection". Anybody else have an opinion on this? How much hype did Alexei have coming in. And did he under or over perform relative to the hype? (BTW - The Twins mod told me he'd much rather have Iwamura who he felt is a better player.)

Last night (Tuesday) he lasted two thirds of an inning... gave up a homerun and walked three guys before being pulled with a 5-3 lead. So, I like Poreda... but I'm not sure we should trade Bobby yet.

Link MINNEAPOLIS (AP)—Minnesota Twins reliever Pat Neshek will have ligament replacement surgery on his right elbow and is expected to miss next season. The right-hander re-injured his elbow last week during a throwing session at the team’s facility in Florida. He had an MRI exam Tuesday, which revealed a complete tear of his ulnar collateral ligament. The procedure could take place next week.

New article by Scott Merkin today on Viciedo. Some old info... some new. Here's a quote that frames the timing of workouts, etc... Torres, who also represents fellow Cubans Alexei Ramirez and Jose Contreras, has acknowledged said offers. He doesn't intend to truly get serious about them until Viciedo's workouts for numerous interested teams are completed Thursday evening in the Dominican Republic. "There definitely are some firm offers in place, and I'm actually scheduled to meet with some team later today," Torres told MLB.com during a phone interview Tuesday from the Dominican Republic. "But I've not responded to one thing. "We are shooting to get things done after Thursday's workout and before Monday of next week. Once we move to that stage of the negotiations, we intend to close the deal. I would prefer him to start getting adjusted to his new team."

QUOTE (Allsox @ Nov 11, 2008 -> 10:22 AM) If KW does trade Vazquez, I wouldn't mind Freddy or Odalis Perez every 4th or 5th day as well. Back in 2006 Sox fans were chasing Freddy around with forks in their hands. He had an ERA over 5.00 most of the year and his fastball wouldn't break glass. So... can he really be counted on to come back and help us out... fill a rotation slot... 3 years and an arm surgery later? I wouldn't bet on it.

I was curious about the name of the AFL team... the Saguaros. Especially since I found out when I went to the games that I was pronouncing it wrong. Damn tourist. Looked it up on dictionary.com. Thought I'd post what I found, for what it's worth. sa⋅gua⋅ro (suh-wahr-oh): a tall, horizontally branched cactus of Arizona and neighboring regions, yielding a useful wood and bearing an edible fruit.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 11, 2008 -> 10:45 AM) Depends on what you mean by "Threw like he has been". If he threw like the has-been he threw like last year, then he wouldn't really be that valuable. I don't think Street was that bad this year. Just not up to his usual standards... and probably a little dicey for a closer... but as a setup guy? Not bad. Remember, Brad Lidge looked average to bad in 2006-2007 and a new environment worked out very well for him. I think a change of place could be exactly what Street needs. He's got the talent. And he's only 25 years old.

Take out Poreda's one bad outing and he's doing very well.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Nov 10, 2008 -> 10:28 PM) Viciedo has scheduled a series of workouts/showcases in the Dominican Republic next week...so it doesn't look like any signing of the kid will take place for the next 7-10 days, if not 2 weeks. I think the workouts are on Wednesday of this week. And it looks like the Sox have already made an offer too.

QUOTE (Kalapse @ Nov 10, 2008 -> 09:07 PM) Just sort of thinking out loud here. Adam Russell, Lance Broadway, ??? and/or ??? for Taveras and Street. Not saying I necessarily want this sort of thing to happen but it's kind of funny how two guys that KW has shown strong interest in within the past few months now happen to be on the same team and are almost certainly going to be dealt within in the next few months. I don't know who the ??? would be but I know they're looking for bullpen help and rotation depth, Broadway's name has come up already in connection with the Rockies and Russell seems like a decent enough trade chip when dealing with a low payroll team in need of cheap, possible high impact relievers. EDIT: Now that I think about it they also have Atkins who they're looking to unload. Yeesh I could easily see some sort a mega deal brewing between the Sox and Rox. Yep. You're reading my mind. Lots of places where we match up need-wise with the Rockies.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Nov 10, 2008 -> 06:49 PM) Aaron Cunningham, who profiled as something of a cross between Aaron Rowand and Reed in terms of talent and tools? I think he'll be a major leaguer, but I don't know that he's going to have a significantly higher impact than, say, Ryan Sweeney. If he starts hitting 25-35 homers per season, but most don't see that happening. Have you seen any pictures of this guy? He's a shorter but more muscular Eric Byrnes. IMO, he will hit for decent (20-25 homerun) power in MLB and be better on-base wise than Sweeney. But he'll be a corner outfielder.

I just spent some time on an A's board looking for their fans' perspective. Interesting... Most felt it was a fair deal... and they're pleased with A's management stepping up and adding an all-star caliber offensive player. The only player who triggered any potential regret was Gonzales... but the consensus seems to be that the team is pretty deep in outfield prospects and so he was expendable.

The Denver Post seems to be confirming Street/Gonzales/Smith. I find it very interesting to read the Rockies fans comments about the trade. I'm guessing most don't follow the AL too closely because there's alot of people who hate the deal.

QUOTE (Greg Hibbard @ Nov 10, 2008 -> 01:51 PM) Empty division titles no longer mean anything to this fan League Championships and World Series are all I really care about I used to hang my hat on division crowns, but honestly who the hell cares anymore if you don't go any further. Division titles mean a great deal to alot of people. Think about it... When a team wins a division title that generally means the fans of that team had a pretty good, if not great, summer. Losing in a short 3-out-of-5 ALDS series doesn't change that.

QUOTE (rangercal @ Nov 10, 2008 -> 12:51 PM) ok, fair enough. That's still not a small group. To make my argument, How much of a dropoff would there be between Bobby and guy # 20? I'm guessing nothing drastic. I think you've identified a key issue. If somebody thinks there are 20 closers as good as Bobby in the AL then, by all means, it makes sense to trade him if we could get alot for him. Who wouldn't trade a 'league average' closer if they could get very good players in return? But... I look at that group of players and IMO the comparable list is ALOT smaller... like 10. And I doubt that many (if any) of those guys are available. Because if teams want to compete, they need a good closer. Competing teams don't look to trade their closers. Rebuilding teams do.

QUOTE (Stan Bahnsen @ Nov 10, 2008 -> 02:54 PM) The Sox better be damn sure that Poreda is ready to close in APRIL if they trade BBB. You can't win a division in June, but you can sure as heck be out of it at that time if you can't close for three months while waiting for someone to develop. It's a huge gamble with the 2009 season (which could be a great one) if no one is able to immediately assume the closer's role. Amen to that. Just ask Cleveland and Detroit.

Tim Brown on Yahoo Sports said an A's source says it's Street, Greg Smith, and Carlos Gonzales. Link

Jeff Passan's Ultimate Free Agent Tracker Yahoo Sports baseball analyst lists 183 free agents, ranks them, and makes comments about each. Some of the comments are pretty funny... especially on the lower ranked guys. Nice that it lets you view them by position too.

Another gem of a quote from last year's thread... "Fukudome has an OFP of a well-above average MLB player. Ramirez is a fringe-avg. player. Position Players (not pitchers) do not get 48 M and another get 4+ M for no good reason fellas. Ramirez is a known quantity. All 30 MLB teams have seen him play and have the report above in on him. You don't "steal" a player for 4+ M when all teams have their reports on the player turned in." Oops.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Nov 10, 2008 -> 09:16 AM) Trib article seems to indicate that this guy is a bit of a slacker. My guess... they got scooped by Cowley, so they had to try and come up with something suggesting they were clued in on Viciedo. If the guy can hit like they suggest, I want him on our team.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Nov 10, 2008 -> 07:08 AM) The Red Sox have a different payroll level. Paplebon's K rate hasn't been nosediving. He doesn't weigh 300 pounds. There's reason to believe he will have a longer career than Jenks. If you were the White Sox GM and Theo called and offered Papelbon for Jenks straight up, would you do it or hang up the phone? Not sure what any of that has to do with anything. (1) The Sox have one of the highest payrolls in baseball and are profitable. But some fans continue to think we should act like a small market team. Whatever. (2) Regarding Jenks' K-rate... his big K year was also his worst season. The last two years he's had both a declining K-rate and a declining ERA. Call me crazy but I prefer a lower ERA. (3) Jenks is a big boy.... true. And you're worried this will limit his longevity. Give me a break... he's 27 years old. Frankly I'm not worried about 5 years from now. I'm worried about 2009. (4) What in the world would calling Theo and offering to trade Jenks for Papelbon prove? You could have the same conversation with Theo about Nathan, K-Rod, or Mariano Rivera and the answer would still be no. Bottom line: There is a small group of elite closers in baseball. Jenks is in that group. If we get rid of him, we won't have one anymore. I fail to see how it would make our team better next year.

Maybe I'm wrong but I have a hard time imagining that Red Sox fans are sitting around talking about trading Jonathan Papelbon for the good of their ballclub. (Papelbon is a few months older than Jenks, makes a little more money, and has basically the same amount of MLB service time.)

I believe Slayer is an in-house Sox-talk nickname. His team mates call him Gordo.

This is the list for 2009 announced after the Sox organizational meetings. Player Development Instructors Director of Player Development: Buddy Bell Field Coordinator: Nick Capra Pitching Coordinator: Kirk Champion Hitting Coordinator: Jeff Manto Outfield Instructor: Daryl Boston Infield Instructor: Ron Oester Catching Instructor: John Orton Bunting/Baserunning Instructor: Manny Trillo Latin Roving Instructor: Jose Bautista Conditioning Coordinator: Dale Torborg Minor League Training/Rehab Coordinator: Scott Takao Class AAA Charlotte Manager: Chris Chambliss Pitching Coach: Richard Dotson Hitting Coach: Gary Ward Trainer: Scott Johnson Conditioning: Chad Efron Class AA Birmingham Manager: Everado Magallanes Pitching Coach: J.R. Perdew Hitting Coach: Andy Tomberlin Trainer: Joe Geck Conditioning: Raymond Smith Class A Kannapolis Manager: Ernie Young Pitching Coach: Larry Owens Hitting Coach: Greg Briley Trainer: Kevin Pillifant Conditioning: Tim Rodmaker Class A Winston-Salem Manager: Joe McEwing Pitching Coach: Bobby Thigpen Hitting Coach: Robert Sasser Trainer: Josh Fallin Conditioning: Adam Tischler Advanced Rookie Great Falls Manager: Chris Cron Pitching Coach: Brian Drahman Hitting Coach: Olmedo Saenz Trainer: TBD Conditioning: Jeremie Imbus Advanced Rookie Bristol Manager: Ryan Newman Pitching Coach: Curt Hasler Hitting Coach: Jerry Hairston Trainer: Cory Barton Conditioning: Ibrahim Rivera

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Nov 9, 2008 -> 02:13 PM) Then you would have been against trading Marte after 2003. You would have been against trading Shingo in 2004. Obviously, no one here is saying give him away. If you can get a lot for him, it should be considered for a guy with all his red flags who pitches 65 innings a year. If 2 years from now he gets eight figures, $10,000,000 for 65 innings is over $150k/per inning. Please.... Shingo had one year wonder written all over him. And, with the advantage of hindsight, trading Marte may have been a smart thing... But you can't make decisions on players we have today (like Jenks) using a rear view mirror and cherry-picking comparisons of guys who didn't repeat success. QUOTE (greg775 @ Nov 9, 2008 -> 02:38 PM) You can't trade everybody or you'll always be rebuilding. If KW trades Bobby he better truly believe he has an answer currently on his staff. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ My feelings exactly... especially when you're talking about pitching.