Dick Allen

The Sox aren't going to tell anyone what they are willing to bid. That is to be negotiated. And they don't gain anything by letting the cat out of the bag. I just wonder what happens today. Do they make a crazy offer or an offer at all before he visits anywhere else? It could be great but what if the Yankees come close and the Phillies blow it away, and the Sox were willing to go higher? J wish the Sox were the last visit. That way you can say what is it going to take to get this done right now. I don't think that could happen today.

Too bad Jim Boylen isn't available today. Manny and his wife could have been doing push ups to get back into the car.

Especially after the gift in the 2005 playoffs.

jaime Navarro (I will never forget when he cried about run support after giving up 9 runs) Ron Santo Jerry Dybzinski Javy Vazquez Gavin Floyd

He is more than likely going to hear what Ozzie thinks whether the Sox use him or not. It would probably be best if they tried to work with him. No matter what, Ozzie and his punk sons all love JR. So, at the very least, there's that.

Another guy that knows Machado a little bit is Ozzie. I think Machado used to hang out with a Guillen boy or 2 when they lived in Miami.

Most likely it doesn't matter. I think I would rather go last, but if they are going to be wining and dining, it might get old by Thursday. Offer the most money. At this point, it's about all that is left to do. The presentation isn't going to make him want to run away.

Has he signed yet?

If it worked, yes. If not, we would laugh. Personally, I think throwing another $9 million for the 2019 season directly at Manny might work just as well, if not better. But, at the very least, the Sox now have another recruiter who is tighter with him than any other team can throw out there. So we will see. I really don't think Hahn did that trade blind. I think it was part of the deal.

He would be correct.

Dick Allen Maggs Big Hurt Ventura Chet Lemon/Steve Kemp tie

Fangraphs has him negative every year of his career, and in 2017, they had Abreu better. He is an average bat, weak defender, who just happens to be Manny Machado’s brother in law. The last fact is the one they traded for.

Why do you think he plays good defense?

Olney is staying the Sox are not going to break records. It might explain why he laughed when others mentioned the White Sox. So much contradiction out there. I find it lunacy to trade for Alonso if you are not prepared to win the bidding. His info has to be wrong. We will see.

Hahn for some reason felt it necessary to dance around the trade with writers today, denying it had anything to do with Manny. He just thought Alonso was a great fit , yet he never discussed him with Cleveland until he was on his way home from the winter meetings, They has set up the Manny meeting then, so I think he knew what he was doing, and throwing $9 million at a prayer is nothing the Sox voluntarily do. He had an inkling.

As I have stated I now think this trade shows the White Sox will sign Machado. It makes no sense if they don't, and while Rick Hahn may be a crappy GM, he is a bright and reasonable man. They didn't want to risk perhaps $8 million on Avi . I doubt he would piss away $9 million if he didn't know something that he can't quite say yet.

I doubt it. I think Abreu being RH vs Alonso, Palka, maybe Harper all LH Is also a factor. If I was betting this looks like all in on Manny and saing uncle on Harper

He is saying Alonso or Abreu will DH, So if the Sox sign Harper, Palka has no spot unless Alonso or Abreu have no spot. So it is pretty easy to deduct either no Harper or no Palka. Its obviously an easy choice if they have one, but it is looking more like they don't.

His response was silly. He should have left it at the press release. Except for Ron who has a strange unconditional hatred of Jose Abreu, everyone knows why this trade was made.

Hahn also said Abreu and Alonso will split 1b/dh, and that Palka was in the OF. So that either means out on Harper or Palka is basically been Jabari Parkered.

I just think Hahn was told this will help matters. If it was just a stunt.they could have offered Manny a choice, Alonso as teammate or an extra $9 million in 2019.

I get that but there are going to be people OK with failure because of perceived effort. Effort is for kids. In the real world you only get trophies for results.

Yeah, he would be better keeping his mouth shut. If he was serious and a 30 something 1b with a WAR barely above replacement level is baseball wise a move to take them where they want to be in 2019 and beyond, it should take them to the unemployment line. He probably is saying these things out of respect for Alonso.

It is their job to make the White Sox a desirable destination . There are probably less than 5 teams in MLB that could offer Machado the most money and the chance to play with friends and family where it wouldn't be a slam dunk he says yes. I think he will say yes, but if not it shows how pathetic the team has become. There is no chance he would say no to several teams. It is a results oriented business. If your best is consistently not good enough, it is time for someone else to give their best effort.

The problem is perception and reputation. If the White Sox bring in a relative, offer the most money, and still don’t get the player, it is bad. There aren’t many teams where that would happen. It would be another incident showing the difference beeen successful organizations and the White Sox. But I am going with it is going to work. I think Hahn is too bright to be played, and I think he was lead to believe this, plus the pot being right, gets the job done. Don’t forget Morosi said Manny would sign first and he predictedWhite Sox.