Dick Allen

2 of the worst players in baseball, Gonzalez and Hall are still on the roster. Hall may bounce back, they should see if he has anything in spring training. Maybe they can let Andy be the bench coach if Cora goes to Pittsburgh since they like him so much. He shouldn't be playing major league baseball.

QUOTE(Gene Honda Civic @ Oct 30, 2007 -> 08:31 PM) They're trying to win. So how is a plan of Uribe, Contreras, and pray for a rebound a better plan than getting rid of the deadweight and bringing in a better option at short? All I know is Furcal is FAR more likely to return to his former self (previous 4 years of 285/350/425) than a 36(?) year-old Contreras who's seen his strikeout rate fall in every season. A rotation that's the worst in baseball yet contains Buehrle, Vazquez, and Garland? Let's leave out the hyperbole shall we? Those three could have competed with any single rotation in the post-season. Or if we're going to play the "could be" card, let's at least acknowledge that Danks could turn around like Carmona and Floyd's final 7 starts could be the sign that he's finally figured things out. Then the Sox have what might be the best rotation in baseball... you know, if we're gonna play that game. I know we don't have any great under-30 players, shouldn't that be a reason we should want more draft picks, quickly? Shouldn't that be a reason to get rid of the rapidly aging, and probably eldest member of the roster? I don't know about FAR more likely with Furcal. He has an ankle problem that was just determined did not need surgery. I'm a little leery. Furcal is another guy who they really don't know how old he is, but I'm sure he's younger than Contreras. Moving to the AL, only around for a year. I like Uribe at $8 million less playing for a contract. I like Contreras over Floyd. That's just me. We'll see how it turns out. One thing is for certain, I hope the White Sox make no trades before Mitchell's report comes out, unless they are sure the guy they are getting isn't on it, or are sure the guy they are getting rid of is on it. I heard suspensions will be coming. I was thinking about this with the Renteria trade. If his name appeared, and he got suspended 50 games it would put a whole new spin on the trade. As far as your big 3 in the rotation, I think its FAR more likely Vazquez returns to his normal line than what he did in 2007. Garland tends to be up and down, and Buerhle is usually solid. Its still a rotation that's very short. Danks ran out of gas after about 90 innings, and I don't know how much you could expect out of Floyd. That would put a long of stress on what is right now a horrible bullpen looking for a miracle recovery. I've heard Linebrink's name mentioned. I wouldn't mind taking a few cuts against him. The reason the White Sox sucked last year isn't Juan Uribe. His numbers were pretty comparable to 2005 when he was the SS for a championship team. The reason they sucked was the pitching was 12th in the AL. Only Baltimore and Tampa Bay were worse. Contreras was a big part of that problem. But if September games matter like they apparently do with Gavin Floyd, in August and September Contreras was 5-3 with an ERA below 4.00. You can't be serious about Danks and Floyd. You're starting to sound like KW. He claimed Danks and Gio were the 2 best left handed pitching prospects in baseball.

QUOTE(Gene Honda Civic @ Oct 30, 2007 -> 07:29 PM) Neither is sticking with Contreras and Uribe... I don't understand how Furcal is a bigger question mark than Contreras... And when combined with removing Uribe, he provides about $2M in salary relief in '08. Since we've both concluded that the Sox aren't going to win in '08 (actually, I think they can be a .500 or above team. Just not one which can compete for the division crown). Furcal's more quickly expiring contract, $7M less salary overall, and the ability to possibly bring in extra '09 draft picks with a rebound season, should make him more desirable to a team looking to turn around quickly. If you want to languish as a 4th place team, you keep Contreras around along with all the other slow, (soon-to-be) breaking down over-30 crowd. If you want to get back to being a top team in the Central, you make the necessary moves to get more athletic at the major and minor league level as quickly as possible. They are trying to win. Draft picks are fine, but those guys, if they pan out are usually at least 4 or 5 years down the line. The White Sox would then again be looking for a SS, so the $7 million you supposedly saved over the second year will be eaten up. Bill James is coming out with the top 25 players 29 and under. Not surprisingly, no White Sox will be mentioned. Considering I just read were Silva may get between $10 million and $12 million a year, Contreras contract with a little bounce back is probably not so bad. $13 million for Furcal is a lot. Your $2 million in relief sets up a rotation that could be the worst in baseball. The White Sox need Contreras to bounce back. Maybe not to where he was from mid 2005 to mid 2006, but a guy who can win 12-15 with an ERA around 4.25. I think that's more probable than Gavin Floyd being lights out, or John Danks pitching 200 innings, or Gio Gonzalez, my favorite prospect, having a lot of success his first season. If 2 of those 3 are in the rotation, the White Sox will be battling KC for the cellar, just like this year.

QUOTE(BearSox @ Oct 30, 2007 -> 06:04 PM) Like Jose Contreras is so much better then what John Danks, Gavin Floyd, Lance Broadway, Gio Gonzalez, and Jack Egbert? PUH-LEASE! In my mind, there is a far better chance of Jose Contreras having a good year next year than any of the above. Sorry. Its one thing to have an decent couple starts in September with nothing on the line. But to start the season in the rotation on a team expecting to win is a whole different story. Contreras has done that. I really don't think you could realistically expect an ERA lower than 5.00 from the 5 guys you mentioned. If Contreras pitches like he did in 2007, the Sox are screwed, I will grant you that, but I am one that is against writing him off, or giving him up for someone who will not lower the payroll so you can add other pieces. If the Sox trade Contreras, they must get salary relief. Not get back a huge question mark like Furcal who makes even more and has 1 season on his contract. Regardless of what KW says, this team needs more than a tweak. More than our bad contract for your bad contract. They aren't the defending champions. They somehow need get at least 25 games better next season. More than a couple changes are needed.

QUOTE(Gene Honda Civic @ Oct 30, 2007 -> 05:33 PM) I think the only reason people want Furcal is if it comes by unloading deadweight.... The Sox could pay him $13M and still shed $ if they are able to swing a deal with Contreras($10M) and dump Uribe ($5M). That (theoretically) makes the Sox a better team while spending less money. That leaves Gavin Floyd, John Danks, and Gio Gonzalez battling for 40% of the starting rotation. That isn't going to win.

I really don't know why everyone wants Furcal. He's coming off a fairly poor season, makes $13 million a year, pretty overpriced in myopinion and is a free agent at the end of the season. So even if he played well, he'd be looking for a raise. I

QUOTE(Steve9347 @ Oct 30, 2007 -> 11:45 AM) I'd be very happy to land Furcal. He answers our two most blatant questions of SS and leadoff. Since you are one to rip ARod for a couple of bad postseasons, have you ever checked out Furcal's postseason stats. Except for 1 season, pretty brutal. He gets about $13 million next year, his final year, so thats not too favorable, plus he's been convicted of DUI twice. I hope KW stays away.

I wonder if KW is still banking on the "market correction" he had been counting on this offseason.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Oct 30, 2007 -> 07:25 AM) In this situation, I think Kenny's big mouth is a good thing. Its one less GM that Borass can use to try to drive his price up against other people. If more GMs did this, it would make it much harder for this guy to get his big money. Boras probably wouldn't even listen to KW. He gave him no shot in 2000 and it didn't hurt A-Rod financially. I'm sure Boras already has a pretty good idea what uniform ARod will be wearing, and probably knows almost exactly how his future paychecks will read.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Oct 29, 2007 -> 09:31 PM) So essentially in the off-season the PR department through softballs Tyrus's way, and when the actual basketball people showed up is when the coverage went south on Thomas... nope, that doesn't make me feel any better about him. Scott Skiles is a basketball person, here's his quote in the Tribune on October 4th: "I wouldn't read a lot into who's declared the starter," Skiles said. "Much like P.J., Joe has a nice veteran way about him. We need that while Tyrus is still coming on, but Tyrus is, without question, better than he was. Joakim has unique things he can do. It's a matter of how quickly he'll pick things up. So far, so good. But each guy does something a little different." For a guy who supposedly did nothing, its amazing that the coach thinks he's better than he was. I think people misread Skiles a lot. He has his way with pushing players which make people think he doesn't like them or thinks they aren't very good. If Scott Skiles coaches Tyrus the next 2 or 3 years, I really believe he will be a star.

Its funny the outrage some, particularly Peter Gammons are having at the timing of the opt out. Even MLB is pissed. Well I say so what. Like the Red Sox don't get enough attention and steal other team's opportunities for attention every damn year. Its all orchestrated by Boras, and I agree with Ken Rosenthal. Boras already had a pretty good idea of where ARod is headed and what he'll be making before he told the Yankees good bye.

I read in one of the NY papers over the weekend that they might be interested in Crede. I would doubt anyone trades for him until after they see him in spring training. Damon was a name I threw out there a couple of months ago. The Yankees would have to pick up some of his contract, which would seem possible. I would rather have Crisp myself.

QUOTE(BearSox @ Oct 28, 2007 -> 11:54 PM) I am so sick of OPS. OPS doesn't mean s*** to me when looking at how a player played. ARod has played like s*** in the postseason as a Yankee. It has nothing to do with stats. He has looked like complete garbage at the plate. It's not like he was hitting liners all over the place, because he wasn't and hasn't. Besides 2005 and 2006, ARod is a career .330 hitter in the playoffs. Yeah, he really sucks. He did alright for the Yankees in 2004 and was at least average this season.

I think the long layoff destroyed the Rockies. As hot as they were, things now are evening out. I don't think there is an AL team that if they had just played average for them the past 3 games wouldn't be up 3-0 in this series. Cleveland really has to be kicking themselves. They most likely choked away a title.

Josh Fogg---Rockie slayer

The White Sox and their fans owe Kaz Matsui. If he weren't such a huge bust with the Mets, Iguchi nmost likely would have commanded more cash, basically ensuring he would have been with someone else. He played a big role in the championship.

Paxson will not trade Deng.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Oct 26, 2007 -> 01:11 PM) Which to me I would think would mean he would be MORE likely to stick around and workout with his team. Its one thing if a guy who is a veteran and/or already a star skips out of summers with his teammates, its another for a guy who is WAY behind on the experience scale. Reading between the lines of what Skiles saids about the kid, either he isn't very bright or he is lazy. Either way, he needs to get his ass into gear, or he will end up more like Cleveland Cavliers Shawn Kemp versus Seattle Supersonics Shawn Kemp. Don't compare Tyrus to Shawn Kemp. Kemp used to snort coke in the locker room. He also got really fat. I think Tyrus is a little brighter. It is amazing what's expected from a guy who would be a junior in eligibility had he remained in college. Tyrus spend the majority of his summer back at home which isn't surprising. I read that when he went to LSU, he hadn't been out of the 100 mile radius around Baton Rouge. One of the worries with him in the draft was how he would adapt to life in the big city. He probably is a little arrogant and probably very naive, but he's still a kid, and kids make mistakes. He's such an athletic freak, he won't have to add much to start dominating. Skiles won't let him blow his ability.

I was listening to something today, and the guys were trying to estimate how many people's ashes have been hauled away during this project.

QUOTE(SoxFan562004 @ Oct 26, 2007 -> 11:12 AM) I think stadium/field issues are one thing Bud has been looking over. Some of the playing fields/conditions have sucked, and Bud should put pressure on all teams to never let that be a problem. Also, I am still in shock that the Twins are allowed to build an outdoor stadium. That is going to end up being a nightmare IMO. That "Best interest of baseball" clause should have been used Why? Their weather is not much different from Chicago's from April 1 to October 1. They do average a degree or 2 cooler weather per month, which actually willl probably be good in July and August, and get an average of about 6" less rain during the course of a baseball season. Early in the season may be trouble, but its trouble here, it was a huge problem in Cleveland. Pittsburgh had problems a couple of years ago. Boston as well. The schedule makers will hopefully keep that in mind when constructing a schedule. Milwaukee has a dome, yet plays at the Cubs twice in April 2008, and the Cubs don't go to the dome until the end of July.

QUOTE(knightni @ Oct 26, 2007 -> 07:30 PM) Well, is there a decent backup plan in house immediately available if he is a free agent? Jason Bourgeois is a 2B/OF spect, but only a SS in a pinch. He also will be 26 years old and is minor league free agent.

I had a 3 in 1 HP, it came with my HP computer, and it worked well for about a year and a half, then went bad. A guy at Best Buy steered me to the 3 in 1 Epson, which actually was cheaper. Its been great.

Ryan Bukvich.......................................he gone.

Tyrus was in the Jim Beam Club the game I took in from there last July. The guy is a freak. Its like he's on a trampoline. If he learns to shoot a little bit, if he could get any kind of post game, he can be a star. He's so young and inexperienced, it will take some time. I don't believe Tyrus has been playing basketball very long.

QUOTE(bigruss22 @ Oct 25, 2007 -> 08:13 PM) And Floyd has a 6.30 ERA for his MLB career, what im trying to say is that floyd isnt a lock and Masset has some good pitches to work with. if he can pull it together he could win the starting job, but im also not saying that floyd wont win it, i jsut havent been impressed enough by him last season or in his career to give him the job or to expect him to run away in spring training with it. I think if the Sox are counting on good things from either of them, there is reason to be very concerned.