Dick Allen

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 7, 2012 -> 10:14 AM) Just smart spending, Dick Allen. Nathan=$14.75 million for 2 years Matt Thornton=$12 million for 2 years (considering they're getting a closer and we're getting a set-up guy, seems they're getting the better deal) Total money invested into Feldman, Darvish, Harrison, Holland, Colby Lewis and N. Feliz=$153 million (2/3rd's to Yu Darvish, roughly) That's really scraping together a bullpen with dime a dozen pitchers.

Would people rather have a lockdown closer or today's version of Francisco Liriano? Liriano is a starter so I guess he's far more valuable if you know baseball according to some.

QUOTE (Reddy @ May 7, 2012 -> 10:01 AM) but dude, we've had elite 7-8-9 guys for YEARS and you know what? they're always DIFFERENT GUYS because they're good one year or 2 years and then flame out after that. relievers are a dime a dozen. I promise you this. beyond Mo, Hoffman, .... and that's it... name me a closer who DIDN'T lose his job as closer at some point in his career. Those two guys are the exception to the very, very clear RULE that closers are NOT WORTH THE MONEY they get paid. and yes, I'll point you to Tampa and Texas as two teams with great scrapped together bullpens. JUST LIKE WE WERE IN 2005! Which of those guys is still a MLB pitcher? Texas spent a ton of cash for Joe Nathan.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ May 7, 2012 -> 09:51 AM) You've got the elites: Mariano, Joe Nathan from '04 through '09, Billy Wagner, Eric Gagne for a couple years, etc. But putting together a competent bullpen is by far the easiest component to piecemeal together for a franchise. The Rays have done it for like 5 years now. It also can fail miserably and then you are totally screwed. You can have a great offense and great starters, if you're bullpen is bad, you're in a lot of trouble. As Gonzo wrote this morning, Sale and Reed could be Gossage and Forster part II. Not bad, especially considering how important a good bullpen is these days.

QUOTE (Reddy @ May 7, 2012 -> 08:30 AM) i'm glad someone understands baseball. Good releivers are not a dime a dozen, and if you don't understand that, you don't understand baseball. How many games have the Sox blown so far this short season without having a true closer? Ask Boston fans about dime a dozen relief pitchers. There aren't a lot of perrenial good ones, but Sale and Reed look like they could be.

QUOTE (Reddy @ May 7, 2012 -> 08:31 AM) lol it wasn't doing that in spring training. it moved like a beast back then. The only movement its been getting since the games started counting is its moving into the bleachers.

QUOTE (Reddy @ May 6, 2012 -> 07:08 PM) he should be starting, and learning not to tip his screwball. if he does that, he'll be fine. He should be working on his screwball trying to get it to do something, or scrap it all together. It is not tipping the screwball, its what the ball is actually doing and that is nothing except getting hit hard.

QUOTE (JorgeFabregas @ May 6, 2012 -> 05:48 PM) Stults for the start, Quintana for the pen: http://www.southsidesox.com/2012/5/6/30035...ck-to-charlotte Another lefty for the pen? When will Crain be ready to go?

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ May 6, 2012 -> 05:30 PM) The thing that bothers me is this: when has a pitcher ever been fixed/healed by being sent to the pen? To me, this is like Rose and his knee. If his elbow is going to blow, it is going to blow. Babying him isn't going to help it. I would rather him take a few weeks off and come back to the rotation and see if the pain comes back. If it comes back, aggressive treatment and a doctor andrews visit. Going to the pen to me is just silly. Its being assumed that there is nothing that needs fixing now, but if they continue on the same path, something real bad will happen. He might still get hurt, but its probably safe to assume his chances of avoiding the knife is best served coming out of the bullpen. The White Sox have more information than we have. They also would rather have Sale as a starter than reliever. They didn't make this decision on a whim.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 6, 2012 -> 04:56 PM) You're honestly telling me with this post that you feel Nestor Molina is ready to face a major league line-up? Maybe the Twins, sure. You can even start Zach Stewart against them these days and get a victory. I mean REAL line-ups. No, but you make the Cleveland Indians out to be the '27 Yankees. They beat Yu Darvish..............why bother showing up?

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 6, 2012 -> 04:46 PM) Molina against the Indians' LH hitters? Haha. They just tore up Yu Darvish. I don't understand why the Sox are even bothering going to Cleveland. Take the forfeits and move on. Any team featuring Shelley Duncan is really too scary to play.

With as much s*** guys like Beckham and Morel get, its amazing the free pass Alexei Ramirez gets on this board. I do realize he is a notoriously slow starter, and have noted this year's start is hardly any different from all his others, but these games do count. The guy has a .217 OBP. Its time Alexei does something differently in the offseason in an attempt to actually start hitting before the season is 20% over.

Swung at ball 4.

Hawk knowing his personnel reminding Stone the SB keeps them out of the ground ball DP

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ May 6, 2012 -> 03:03 PM) I think he tips that screwball. He may be but even if he isn't, its pretty straight.

QUOTE (Jake @ May 6, 2012 -> 03:01 PM) He just needs to be a starting pitcher. We have no need for him in our bullpen anymore. Before he's ruined as a prospect, get him ready to be a starter I don't see how that is going to make him tougher to hit. He wasn't considered much of a prospect before a nice spring training. He's showing everyone why.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 6, 2012 -> 02:59 PM) Please let this be it for the Santiago in the majors experiment. Not sure what else anyone needs to see. I don't get it either. When he gets hit, which is often, he gets hit hard.

QUOTE (Reddy @ May 6, 2012 -> 02:25 PM) they don't feel he can without risking injury. my feeling is that if you have to build up arm strength by risking injury, then so be it. if you lose a year Chris Sale to TJ surgery with the benefit having 10 more years of dominant post-TJ pitching, you take it. Every time. I don't know where you get your information that TJ surgery is no big deal and everyone comes back stronger for it and isn't subject to the same injury occurring again. See Liriano, Francisco for one. If it were true, teams would have pitchers undergo the surgery the day they were signed.

Beckham is 2 feet and a 15 mph breeze yesterday from having as many HR as Pujols and Fielder combined.

QUOTE (Reddy @ May 6, 2012 -> 11:38 AM) he's obviously a closer. what the f*** is the point in having two ace closers? You posted yesterday that closers aren't valuable. Now they are wasting Reed not using him as a closer.

QUOTE (Reddy @ May 6, 2012 -> 10:28 AM) the white sox are looking at sale as their permanent closer. permanent. not starting. he spent this WHOLE OFFSEASON preparing to start, and the sox brass still wasn't ok with it. what's he gonna have to do to change their mind? There's nothing he CAN do. This is his new job. He's never starting again. If he DID, we'd be having a Joba Chamberlain situation, and we know what happened there. I agree with this.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 6, 2012 -> 09:09 AM) And what is the average OPS in MLB this year? 2011? It's down from 730 to 720, so having the same OPS as last year would mathematically be an improvement according to the laws of statistical analysis. Let me guess, it's lower this year. We can argue the definition of improvement, but how can you account for an offense who didn't add anything significant (and actually lost one of its best OPS performers in Quentin) and has probably the weakest bench offensively in the majors leagues outperforming the 2011 version? Last year was just a "fluke" year or unlucky, right? Some of the hitters like Dunn are simply returning to their historical norms and last year was an outlier? Well, then the same arguments can be made for Heyward, who was commonly pronounced one of the future superstars of the game by every scout in the country. I don't know if you're trying to call me out or what, but the timing of this is peculiar. The Sox are at where they were at last year offensively, and Atlanta leads MLB in runs scored. It would be kind of hard to make my viewpoint look foolish at the moment.

QUOTE (Reddy @ May 6, 2012 -> 09:47 AM) we have no minor league system from which to cultivate two starting pitchers we have no minor league system from which to deal for two starting pitchers we have no major league pieces with friendly enough contracts to deal for two starting pitchers we have absolutely zero track record on drafting decent players, and even if we did, that would be a couple years off. the reality is, we're not going to be competitive for the next couple years. and that bums me out. Now you have a lot of extra time during the summer to do something you might enjoy.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 6, 2012 -> 10:00 AM) Quentin for Carter Definitely. If that trade wasn't made, the Sox probably don't win the division in 2008, A whole lot might have been different. Ozzie might have been gone sooner, Rick Hahn might be the GM.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ May 6, 2012 -> 09:52 AM) Obviously we will never know the truth, but to me it seems pretty obvious that Swisher didnt fit in and it carried over to the field. That is a personality scouting issue. When Swisher was acquired i really dont remember many people complaining about the price When they acquired Swisher and Cabrera, they made it a point to say they needed some vocal guys in the clubhouse. There have been plenty of posts through the years with posters being pissed at Konerko for not being a loudmouth. It was ironic, that even though that team won the division, KW couldn't get rid of those 2 fast enough.