Dick Allen

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 10:02 AM) Wait a second... are you saying you were with Ozzie on that one? You didn't want Thome around because he was too slow, or not versatile? You thought Mark Kotsay was better than Jim Thome? Actually, I was one of Thome's biggest fans on this board. The same board that praises Dunn, but used to kill the far better Thome.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 09:36 AM) No, I am, I read it clearly, until you tried to have it not be the same for Frank Thomas' walks, since he was a speedster. It's baffling how walks aren't valuable. Just tell him to swing at anything for the HR, getting on base is overrated. You should be in someone's front office. Frank wouldn't have been the hitter he was if he didn't take as many walks. I doubt you could say the same about Dunn. Once again, I didn't say walks were useless, but it Adam Dunn's case, they aren't as valuable as guys who actually have the ability to score a lot of runs. Funny you mentioned front office. I actually read an article where someone in some teams' front office was discussing this very subject and had the same view I have a few years ago. The player they were talking about was different. It was Jim Thome.

QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 09:25 AM) You know what makes Dunn more dangerous when walked? Better hitters behind him. In a comeback performance, he had a pedestrian .333 OBP. And your comment is not unique regarding Adam Dunn. The 41 homers are great. He was far more productive than I thought he would be, but he tailed off after a quick start after the All Star break. Doesn't make as much contact as he used to when he used to flirt with 200 strikeouts a year, and shouldn't be batting 3rd.

QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 09:11 AM) Right, Dunn needs to steal 2nd, 3rd, and home for a walk to mean something. Stop blaming Dunn for something out of his control. All I have said is walking Adam Dunn isn't as damaging as walking other players. His walk numbers don't translate to as many runs as some would believe. His walks aren't as valuable as when some others walk because it takes more to score him. Walks are the second biggest part of Dunn's offensive arsenal.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 09:05 AM) You could not, right now, sign a free agent who would be more productive than Dunn for $15M a year, whether you like that or not. Somebody who walks as much as Dunn has to bat 3rd, especially in a Sox lineup that is very deficient in OBP. If Adam Dunn were a free agent right now, he would get nowhere near $15 million the next 2 seasons. BTW his .333 OBP you think is so wonderful, is .014 higher than the major league average. So with all his walks, he gets on base 7 times more per 500 plate appearances than the average major leaguer. Not really a 3 hole hitter.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 09:09 AM) Unless you are really really fast, walks don't mean anything. Got it. You're not paying any attention, but again, that's what you do.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 08:58 AM) Running up a pitch count and turning over a lineup is very valuable. Look at how many teams struggle with their bullpens. Also, Dunn bats 3rd instead of 5th or 6th specifically because he walks a lot and needs people behind him to drive him in. You're essentially saying Dunn's value is wasted if the rest of the lineup sucks, which is true. The fix, however, isn't to get rid of Dunn but to have a lineup that doesn't suck. He shouldn't be batting 3rd, and if you think Adam Dunn is worth $15 million a year, you should be an agent.

QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 08:50 AM) If Dunn walks and doesn't score, it isn't his damn fault that the players behind him couldn't capitalize. Maybe not, but then his walks really aren't valuable if they don't result in runs. And it didn't just happen in Chicago. The same thing occurred in Cincinatti, Arizona and Washington. He didn't score much if he didn't drive himself in. The other thing, he doesn't get as many doubles as he used to either. His slugging is down even with the 41 homers. His OBP is down even with leading the league in walks. Adam Dunn is not worth anything near what the Sox are paying him.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 08:27 AM) \ Did it bother you when Frank Thomas did it? Frank would frequently take a walk instead of driving in a run. I suppose Frank should have been giving himself up to drive and drive in the runs? Any comparison between Frank Thomas and Adam Dunn is a joke. Frank was a far better hitter than Adam Dunn, and produced far more runs during his non walk at bats. Personally, I always enjoyed watching Frank hit more than he walked, but the walks were the product of his eye, and other teams' fear Again, I don't think walks are a bad thing, but in the case of Adam Dunn, they aren't nearly as valuable as some make them out to be.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 07:58 AM) Walking is part of doing the damage. When you walk, you put a runner on base and you don't make an out. I'm not sure I understand your second point. Are you saying that if a different batter had been batting 3rd and had walked the same as Dunn, he would have scored more? I don't even see how that's possible. If Dunn's only chance to score is to drive himself in, then he's on a pretty lousy team that isn't going anywhere with or without him. Dunn can't steal bases and doesn't take extra bases on hits as much as some, therefore, it takes more for him to score than other players with more speed and/or better baserunning instincts and abilities. If the walk doesn't ultimately result in a run or runs, the only damage being done is running up a pitch count and/or turning over a line up, again, not useless, but not as valuable as a better baserunner drawing walks resulting in scoring. Adam Dunn is paid to produce runs. If the walks don't result in runs, they really aren't that big of deal, kind of like having an in his prime Mariano Rivera on the 2012 Astros. And ultimately Dunn's OBP is lacking despite his walks which only get him to first base and only score a run if the bases are loaded.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Nov 2, 2012 -> 07:03 AM) Until 2012, Adam Dunn had never played a full season for a team that finished with a winning record. How many runs he scores is 100% reflective of that fact and 0% reflective of the value in him taking walks. Oh, and players don't get intentionally walked every game. It happens on average one of every three games. If you pay someone $15 million a year, the thought is for him to do the damage, not try leave it up to someone else. If it doesn't translate into runs, its a pretty meaningless event. Not all walks are created equal. If you think with the same line ups if every player walked the exact same time Adam Dunn walked, the runs created would be the same, I think you're way off. You can get hung up Dunn's walks all you want, but the truth is for most slow footed guys, walks aren't nearly as productive as they are for others. Not that they are totally unproductive, but Adam Dunn walking 105 times isn't nearly as valuable as say Alejandro De Aza walking 105 times.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Nov 1, 2012 -> 04:22 PM) Someone's walks can be overrated? Now I've heard everything. Walks are overrated in a game that is based around getting on base and not making the next out. Brilliant. A walk to Adam Dunn and a walk to Mike Trout are 2 very different things. You can blame the rest of the line up for Dunn not scoring when he walks, but it happens every year of his career. The game is based on scoring runs., not necessarily getting on base, that's why players get intentionally walked every game. For all his walks and high career OBP, The fact remains, if Adam Dunn doesn't hit a home run, he scores about as often as Gordon Beckham. Walking Mike Trout or Rickey Henderson the same amount with the same cast of characters hitting behind them would create more runs. Homers are his game. He scored only 46 when he didn't drive himself home and drove in only 28 when he did't homer. The walks in reality in his case are more stat padders than actually creating runs.

The other thing about Dunn is his walks are overrated. If he doesn't drive himself home, he doesn't score very many times. Now you can blame it on others, but its been the case his entire career. Only twice in his career has he scored more than 60 times in a season via someone else.

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Nov 1, 2012 -> 02:26 PM) Beckham has appeared in 535 games and has made 2067 plate appearances. Moustakas has appeared in 238 games and has made 979 plate appearances. If these guys look the same in a mirror then I imagine it would be possible for an apple to see its own reflection as an orange. Yeah, maybe Beckham over the 2010-11 offseason is a great comp, but then again, Beckham over that same offseason is still worth a s*** ton more than Gavin Floyd, Hector Santiago, etc. etc. Not happening. The point being if you were crying the Sox should have traded Beckham 2 years ago, you will probably be wondering why the Sox would give anything up to get Moustakas in 2 years. I'm not a Gavin Floyd fan, but looking at what's out there, if Hahn wants to trade him, he'll probably get more than he's worth. But I doubt it will be Moustakas.

Moustakas is 2 years younger than Beckham. Offensively, he seems to have the same issues as Gordon. Low average, strikes out, a lot, hits homers, rarely walks. Just another case of Sox fans finding someone else with the same issues as a Sox player as someone who will easily overcome them while the Sox player is garbage with no chance to succeed. I guess what I'm saying is, if you think Beckham is nothing but crap, if you're being logical, you really can't think too much of Moustakas. If you think Beckham should have been traded long ago, trading for his mirror image offensively makes no sense.

QUOTE (GoSox05 @ Nov 1, 2012 -> 09:04 AM) Are the Royals really looking to trade Moustakas? Supposedly the Royals say they will dump a bat for pitching. Someone on Bleacher Report suggested Floyd for Moustakas. Some people appear to be running with it, although Floyd is a better option for teams than Haren.

QUOTE (joeynach @ Oct 31, 2012 -> 07:31 PM) 3B Free agent list is super thin. I dont want any of these bums. Miguel Cairo (39) Eric Chavez (35) Mark DeRosa (38) Alberto Gonzalez (30) Orlando Hudson (35) Brandon Inge (36) Maicer Izturis (32) Adam Kennedy (37) Jeff Keppinger (33) Jose Lopez (29) Casey McGehee (30) Placido Polanco (37) Scott Rolen (38) Drew Sutton (30) Ty Wigginton (35) Kevin Youkilis (34)Read more at http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2011/04/2013...YyvrzzKYs5By.99 Sox were in on Chavez last year. Wouldn't be surprising if it winds up a Morel/Chavez platoon.

If he's healthy, Danks is a huge addition.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Oct 31, 2012 -> 01:22 PM) If we trade for him with Gavin, I'd be all for it. But that probably won't be enough. Like I said, Haren's declining across the board and he will be making $15.5 million next year with his option. For a guy who's probably a 4-4.5 ERA pitcher with an FIP in the 4s, that's overly expensive. Haren and Floyd were basically the same pitcher last year and Floyd is $6 million cheaper and younger. Obviously, you could try to bank on Haren bouncing back a bit, but no way the Sox would swap them straight up.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Oct 30, 2012 -> 02:50 PM) If everyone wants to shout down this nonsense for what it is, Ill gladly stop posting. I cant believe that anyone in their right mind still cares about this. Well the Big Ten actually changed its transfer rule due to Brust. Before, you couldn't get a scholarship at all if you transferred within conference. Bo said Brust's move was a family decision. The article suggests Brust was going to sue the Big Ten which wouldn't let him go to Wisconsin even though Iowa gave its blessing. http://thegazette.com/2012/04/20/2010-bo-r...ing-a-decision/

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Oct 30, 2012 -> 03:53 PM) LOL. Yes, let's have NCAA free agency. Maybe you should consider why it's a rule? Has to be some reason, right? Not "no f***ing reason on earth." Semantics. They keep the money. As far as I can tell, the NCAA has free agency. The players sign with the schools they want to sign with.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Oct 30, 2012 -> 02:43 PM) No TM fees if you buy at the box office. Were Dynamic Deals available at the Box office? I also don't think those $7 tickets were available for anywhere close to 53 games. I'm not doubting his numbers, just pointing out if they are accurate, he was doing something differently than dynamic deals and coupons.

QUOTE (My_Sox_Summer @ Oct 30, 2012 -> 01:57 PM) Supported their Dynamic Deals. Used coupons for the lower ticket prices. Went to 53 games this season for $400. I also filled out a survey and said (like many I am sure) that they needed to sell the tickets in the corners in both the uppers and lowers for a fixed price, lower parking costs, ect. 53 games $400 is $7.54 a ticket. The lowest price I saw with Dynamic Deals was $7, but you wind up paying about double that with ticketmaster fees, so you had a ton of freebies.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Oct 30, 2012 -> 02:09 PM) Schools can make scholarships contingent on graduating from their school, and force the student to repay if he/she doesn't. I don't know how many schools actually do that, but they could if they wanted to. Good luck getting paid back under that scenerio.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Oct 30, 2012 -> 01:55 PM) This is tiring. The second that Uthoff got a scholarship to go to Wisconsin to PLAY BASKETBALL it was about business. If he doesnt want to be involved in the business, pay to go to college like the rest of us. Guess what, if you pay your own freight you can do whatever you want. If its just about the good of the players only, why have any rules? Why not let UNC give out 100 scholarships? Why not let a player transfer during the season? Oh turns out that Minnesota isnt that good this year, why not try MSU? Oh MSU lost this week, Ill transfer to OSU? At what point do we hold these "kids" to their mistakes. Why not give them more years of eligibility? I only got 4 years, maybe if I got 10 Id have been something. The facts are no one at Wisconsin is talking about Uthoff. Its the past, yet for some reason an Iowa fan resurrects a dead issue. Bo Ryan is the most terrible person in the world, he wanted Uthoff to get a free education at a premiere university. For shame Bo Ryan, for shame. Now its about PLAYING BASKETBALL not the U of W education you were popping off about. Well, he didn't PLAY BASKETBALL at Wisconsin, so he should be allowed to go where he wants to go.