Dick Allen

If the Sox do not retain AJ, Konerko or Jenks, I think it would be fair to officially put 2005 in the rear view. Enjoy the championship, but it will be time to start holding all accountable by what is going on now, not giving anyone a pass because of what happened 5 years ago. I think Buehrle would be the only one left unless Garcia re-signed.

Phil Rogers is reporting Buddy Bell is being considered for a coaching gig with Toronto. I just remember the Sox reality show when they were going around asking all the scouts and other officials if they thought the Sox needed a hitter or pitcher at the deadline. Everyone said pitcher except Buddy. There is something that makes me think he has a love/hate relationship with the Sox organization. I remember when he managed at KC taking a few shots at the White Sox dugout leadership for "not knowing the rules",

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 6, 2010 -> 12:43 PM) The biggest argument why that won't happen is that CF is the one position where we can say the Sox legitimately have no one who could be pressed into service. You might not like Flowers at C, Morel at 3b, Viciedo at 1b, Quentin in RF, Santos or Sale at closer...but if we don't sign or trade for someone to fill those positions, we can field a lineup there. If the Sox trade Rios...who steps in? Either they're forced to outbid the Yankees and Halos for Crawford/Werth, which will make Rios's contract seem cheap, or we have some combination of De Aza/D2/Gartrell playing there. May as well go for the full rebuild if you're not holding Rios. Rios was great the first half, but if he starts playing like he played the second half, we will start counting the days before his contract is off the books. With another $12 million a year freed up, the Sox wouldn't have to rely on in-house options to replace him.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 6, 2010 -> 04:03 PM) Really, no it isn't. By my count, with 0 picks in the top 15, The Sox got 4 guys in the first 2 rounds who made appearances in the big leagues, one guy who looks to be a long term solid starting pitcher, another guy who had promise but blew out his knee. Out of their top 19 picks, 10 of them have made it to the big leagues in some form. I don't care if you're just filling up your bench, your bullpen, players 25-30 on your roster, or trade-bait, that is not terrible performance in the overall draft. If you don't think they had a bad draft based on the number of high selections they had, who they selected and who they passed up, I suppose if you were running an organinzation, you would spend little to no money on scouting and just do your draft off a subscription to BP or BA. There wasn't one guy of the 6 in the first 2 rounds that has a career WAR at least 0.0.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 6, 2010 -> 03:49 PM) Exactly why pointing at the people we passed over in any particular draft is a silly way to judge the worst draft pick ever. So what you are saying is except for the obvious top picks, the entire draft is a crapshoot of epic proportions and really you shouldn't give anyone any credit for drafting a guywhere the Sox usually select who becomes successful, nor should you really hammer anyone for picking someone after the top 10 or so who doesn't make it because its more luck than good talent evaluation and projection? In no way am I suggesting Donny Lucy is the worst pick ever. Wes Whisler was picked ahead of him and at least Lucy helped the Sox a tiny bit. But the Sox had ample opportunity that draft to really aid their team for a long time and failed miserably.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Nov 6, 2010 -> 02:36 PM) I disagree wholeheartedly. If you take a look at the top 10 spots in the draft historically, there is a significantly higher percentage of impact players selected there than anywhere else in the draft just like there should be. Drafting in those spots doesn't guarantee you anything, but it does greatly improve your odds of drafting an impact player. Therefore, if you don't ever have a chance to draft in the top 10 spots, like the White Sox missed out on for a long period of time, you've greatly reduced your chances of getting such a player. Of course there are impact guys later in the first round and the rest of the draft, but it's exactly like Balta said, it becomes much more of a lottery. To be honest with you, I think the Sox have done an ok job with their later picks. Chris Young, Brandon McCarthy, and Chris Carter are just several that come to mind. It's the early picks that have killed us and I'm certain we'd have a few less misses if we were picking in the top 10 on a regular basis. The year Lucy got drafted, which is the draft this entire conversion began around as many were mentioning names of players who were available when they took Lucy off the board, there is no mention that Lucy happened to be the 5th White Sox selection. They had already chosen Fields, Lundsen, Gio Gonzlez and Wes Whisler. They also took Ray Liotta in round 2. That is a very weak haul with 6 draft picks that high. Anyone on soxtalk could have selected Beckham or Sale when they were on the board when the Sox picked. These scouts need to step up and pick some guys who are going to develop, either that, or maybe the Sox don't have the correct people developing players. There have been plenty of guys who have turned into pretty good players the Sox have passed on through the past 15 years or so while picking some real stiffs.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 6, 2010 -> 09:36 AM) I've got to agree with Fathom here. If you watched the Bulls and compared them to the Celtics last night...the first big difference is that the Bulls's bench is a disaster in the 2nd quarter and dominates the 4th for some reason I can't figure out. The second big difference is that the Celtics just weren't making the kind of mistakes the bulls were making. 2 turnovers off of inbound plays with under 4 minutes to go? That was horrible and frankly they were just careless mistakes. Or the time after time that they failed to rotate on the pick and roll...usually Rose again but sometimes the other guard...that is just killing them. Better backcourt defensive positioning and the Bulls might have beaten both the Knicks and the C's. The Bulls still look like a poorly coached team half the time. The big difference between now and last year is that they are now actually running better sets on both sides of the ball...the ball movement on offense is vastly better, and the frontcourt defense is vastly better (everyone Deng guards seems to shut down). There are still too many little mistakes though. If this team played like a veteran team...i.e. like the Celtics...they'd look like a team that could win 60. If you have a group of players that has barely played together vs. a group of players that are somewhat familiar with each other that is what it usually will look like. I'll give Thibideau the benefit of the doubt regarding his effectiveness for a while, for the players to learn his system and how to play with each other although it does appear he does a lot of standing on the sidelines looking like more of a spectator than a coach. I do know one thing, when Boozer comes back, either he or Rose have to be on the floor at all times or this team is going to lose ground.

I think the Sox trade Alex Rios. He had decent numbers overall, but his second half was worse than the numbers he had with Toronto when they gave him away. The Sox might be able to sell the entire line of work and might get some decent parts back for him, and free up cash money.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Nov 6, 2010 -> 10:40 AM) Kurt Brown (pick before Bonds) Jason Dellaero (pick before Berkman) are worse, but Lucy eight picks ahead of Pedroia is one of the Sox worst picks. You're going to miss on players. I think what it shows is that its a total myth the Sox draft position is what keeps them from developing great players. There are plenty available every season. They just haven't been very good at recognizing them over the years. Sure they haven't had the top pick slam dunk selection for years, but even when they had that incredible run with Himes, they were eyeing other players. They really wanted Harkey instead of McDowell but the Cubs picked him. They really wanted Jeff Jackson but the Phillies picked him and they had to take Frank Thomas. For some reason the Cubs selecting in front of the Sox and looking for a 3B for decades pass on Robin Ventura, and Alex Fernandez was a no brainer but Milwaukee drafted him in the first round 2 years earlier and didn't sign him.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 6, 2010 -> 09:08 AM) Which is of course why the Cubs replaced their hitting coach last year. Because of Greg Walker. Using Soxtalk logic, Rudy Jaramillo is good for a lot of wins. Its funny the team he left went to the WS.

I think the need for a LH hitter is overblown. Quentin hits like a LH hitter. He mashes righties and struggles with lefties. Just get a good hitter no matter what side of the plate he stands on.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Nov 6, 2010 -> 10:41 AM) *Prays for some magical Manny signing before 23* Donny Lucy had just as many homers and RBI and more extra base hits than Manny had for the White Sox in 2010. Lucy had 15 AB and may be selling insurance in 2011.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Nov 6, 2010 -> 10:36 AM) Only thing Morel showed me with the bat is that he has like a 2 week adjustment period and is then fine. Considering he has very few major league ABs and was hitting under .200 before total garbage time against Boston and Cleveland, the jury is still out on his bat. Vizquel is the insurance policy. I think they probably have called uncle on Teahen as an every day 3B.

I'd like KW to bring back BMac.

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ Nov 5, 2010 -> 06:48 PM) Really? I had no idea that sort of thing existed. I thought a FA could do anything. So say Cliff Lee wanted to sign reasonable 1 year deals until he retired, he couldn't do that if the Yankees offered him multiple years and tons of cash? What are the actual guidelines used by the PA? He can do whatever he wants, but he's going to be pressured, and if he does what he wants and leaves the money on the table, he's going to be known as a guy that cost a lot of players a lot of money. You can get away with giving a team a "hometown discount", but only for so much. The less Danks makes, the less guys of his ilk make in the future. In fact, one article I read several years ago basically said if it wasn't for the union's pressure, Jim Thome would have stayed in Cleveland for a lot less money. Salaries are basically determined by salaries of similar players in similar circumstances. If Cliff Lee decides to sign a one year deal at a time, that will trickle down to a lot of players.

QUOTE (JoeCoolMan24 @ Nov 5, 2010 -> 06:43 PM) So is there a chance AJ could be like "Listen guys, I want to sign by the 23rd, so you will at least get a draft pick out of me". Not saying it would ever happen on purpose, but is there some rules against that? I would guess if the Sox aren't even trying to negotiate a contract for AJ while they have exclusivity, teams understand there is probably little chance the Sox offer AJ arbitration, so they would wait until after that date to sign him. AJ becomes more valuable if his price isn't a first round pick plus his contract than just the cost of his contract. He's not going to try to help the Sox out and hurt his position. Of course, the Sox may get the lay of the land on the alternatives and not like what they are seeing, which may get them to start negotiating and even offering him arb hoping he accepts. Personally, I wish the Sox would at least try to bring him back for a bargain rate while they have no one else giving him an offer, but I think his 5 and 10 rights really bother the Sox front office.

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ Nov 5, 2010 -> 06:04 PM) Agree. Now what if he doesn't look at his free agency through dollar-eyes. Maybe he grew up always wanting to play for a team, or at the very least a contender. He's only 2 years away from being able to sign with ANY team he wants, money aside. Not many guys get that pure opportunity, but he will. And like you're saying, if he hasn't been a dope with his money, then he'll already have made enough these 2 years to cover any injury risk through his remaining arb year. I've been on several White Sox roadtrips over the past few years and have seen Danks around. He always seems really happy. I think he's happy with the Sox. He grew up in Texas so maybe he was a fan of one of the Texas teams, but the Rangers did trade him and Houston blows. The only issue with what you are saying is when you are a free agent and one of the top guys, the players' association isn't going to let you leave a lot of money on the table. So if the Yankees offer $18 million a year for 5 years, and you really want to sign with the Astros but they have 4 years $14 million per, you're really not going to have a choice. Its one reason why I always found the ARod criticism ridiculous. He was offered about $100 million more to go to Texas. The PA wouldn't let him say no even if he wanted. And no one in their right mind is going to take $100 million less.

QUOTE (gatnom @ Nov 4, 2010 -> 01:02 AM) I don't think we particularly overpaid him, though it could be an issue paying somewhat of a premium for a role player when we have so little to spend. The Sox as an organization seem to be very fair if not unfair to themselves when they deal with contracts or trades. I always get the feeling that they try to give what they believe to be fair market value instead of actually trying to "win" the deal/contract. For a guy his age, maybe you overpaid $250k-500k but you can consider that a bonus for 2010 when they got a real bargain. It surprised me. I thought they were just pissing money away on him.

For all the giddiness about Morel, he's great with the glove, but offensively, besides a couple of homers, he showed he's a ways away. I doubt Omar matches his 2010 offensive output next season, but once he was playing, the Sox got a lot better defensively on the infield and started winning games. Unless KW goes and gets an obvious everyday 3B, no matter what they say now, Omar is going to wind up with the majority of the starts there as long as he's healthy.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 5, 2010 -> 05:43 PM) The team that was signing him last year had no interest in having him play the field. He would have played there a little. There were many on this board thinking KW should sign him, and NOT as a full time DH, but part of the rotating DH, and KW almost did sign him. The guy is going to get hurt whether he's playing the field or DHing or just taking his dog for a walk. Hendry is stupid for signing him, but if its for minimal money is it any dumber than any other GM who traded for him or signed him or offered him even more cash? Its weird, when the Cubs don't win its the GM's fault. When the Sox don't win, its on the hitting coach.

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ Nov 5, 2010 -> 04:39 PM) Insurance is the simple answer, that's correct. But Danks will already have around 20 mil after the next 2 seasons. If he went to free agency, why wouldn't he be offered $14 per year from any team he likes? He'll be able to write his ticket anywhere. I doubt he's really thinking he'll get injured. Sure it's a gamble on his part but not THAT big of one. Its always a bigger gamble for a pitcher. He also might be costing himself a lot of cash, and security by signing an extension. What if the Sox bought out the first year of free agency or even the second and he gets hurt one of those years? Not only is he pitching for a lower wage, he probably costs himself 2 or 3 years of guaranteed money. Its something he will have to decide. The other thing is if he's planning on getting $15 million a year for 5 or 6 years, there aren't a whole lot of teams that will go there. He'd have to weigh whether he'd truly be happy with those teams because if he does sign an extension this offseason, its not like he's really going to need anymore money unless he's just a dope.

You heard it here first, no inside info just a hunch, if Konerko goes elsewhere, KW signs Dye as a firstbaseman.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Nov 4, 2010 -> 01:10 PM) Looks like Jim Hendry is after Nick Johnson to play 1B for the Cubs. Thats about the caliber of GM I would expect to sign this guy to start. If he's healthy what's the difference signing him this year or last except this year will be much cheaper?

Until teams start hiring White Sox guys instead of interviewing him, I think the using an interview is proof a guy isn't a goof is pointless. Look at some of the losers the Cubs interviewed for their managerial position.

But Danks doesn't want to be a White Sox by evidence of his turning down the exact same deal Floyd accepted. He's the Sox biggest trade chip.