Dick Allen

For sure, but how many titles does KW have if he gets to work with Beanes budget? Only 2 times have they had a $100 million payroll. And that was barely.

How would it make a difference either way? It is a non issue.

Keep in mind the year after the White Sox won the WS and had their highest attendance ever, the Cubs won 66 games and drew 200,000 more people. 75% is an exaggeration, but there is a significant difference.

He had knee surgery. Nothing major since he actually still played after it was scheduled. But a playoff team isn't going to want a guy with lingering leg problems on basically a rental.

I doubt Houston actually gave him a physical. The Sox probably shared all their info with them and their doctors probably came to the conclusion, which turned out correct, that he was going to need surgery. There is some stuff teams are supposed to share. It is what got AJ Preller in trouble.

If it is such a deterrent, how come people are still getting shot? Isn't the US the most armed country, and has the most people shot? Shouldn't it be the other way around?

I read an article the other day about players who became FAs young. Bonds and ARod had the highest cumulative WARS. Machado is now 3rd all time. Heyward was 3rd. Harper is 11th.

Maybe not, but if Levine and Nightengale are considered questionable, Bernstein is a more than a couple of notches below them, at least when it comes to MLB.

Although the Cubs news is based on Dan Bernstein. He's been pretty off when it's come to baseball before. Laughably off.

The Sox are like Iowa trying to recruit against Kentucky and Duke. They will be all polite and say they really love your program, and the direction it is going, but will never pick you.

Harper to the Cubs would really be a bad thing for the Sox.

Or they could trade someone to shore that up. Losing Harper would be a blow, especially with ownership with very deep pockets.

It's a start. They knew unless their offer was nuts, he was going to be a free agent. They can wait. They have the most to lose, and have worked well with Boras previously. Apparently one issue Harper had with it was not the lack of opt outs, but the lack of a no trade.

The Nats. They were willing to go to $300 million. So, if the time game where it looked like he was leaving town, I would expect a better effort.

Yes, and he will look like Pablo Sandoval in about 6 months.

The problem is the more he concentrates on pitching, the less he can concentrate on hitting. His hitting needs some concentration. He did well in a fun way, but would anyone want to see if he could be a mediocre at best mop up guy, if it meant his hitting was most likely only going to get worse? He really wouldn't be worth a roster spot on a good team. i think keeping him doing what he is doing is the way to go. He can fill in during blowouts, and work on his offense.

So are you saying if guns were never invented, many more would be murdered? That is probably about as silly as it gets.

Does Harper have any kids? He was a LaRoche supporter, and loved the Drake. He said he wanted the same for his kids. Might want to keep KW away from him.

They aren't married and ARod is from Miami. With his contract, he didn't have many options. The first attempt was Boston, but the players association wouldn't approve the pay cut he would have had to take.

It is widely known Machado would prefer playing for the Yankees. I don't really think it's a great sell, hey if you suck here, we're kind of incognito, so it won't be as brutal.

I think most think it's a lock the Phillies get one of these guys, so if Machado goes to NY, the Sox are back to scrap heap. I would think their biggest competition would be the Nats, as they have always been one of Boras' fall back teams. Harper loved it there, and they have a lot to lose having him go elsewhere.

That is not unique to NY. Do you really think if Machado got off to a slow start with the White Sox the fans would be understanding? It wouldn't be as brutal because there are about a quarter of the people in the stands. But he is going to get killed anywhere he goes if he starts out slowly, except maybe LA.

This isn't the NBA. MLB has done a terrible job marketing their stars. There are only a handful of guys who are really big deals f , and Machado isn't one of them. He would have about as much impact from a marketing standpoint as Albert Belle, and that was about zero. He's a good player though, and would help the team win.

The other issue is Lavine is already saying he's fatigued.

If the Sox were legit contenders now, I would have no problem giving him an opt out after 3 years. But you are asking for a lot of things to go more than right very quickly for that to be the case. I am sticking with 10 years $350 million. No opt outs. The most well known MLB baseball player is a White Sox for a decade. See what that does with Harper and Boras. The money can be negotiated higher if necessary. But you have to see where you stand, and see if you are just being used. It is amazing to me how much you read about these players dancing with teams and how long it takes for an offer. Give them something legit. If they just want to file it, the White Sox are probably in the same position on his destination list Chicago was on Amazons.