Dick Allen

Lawrie was at one time good enough to be trade for Josh Donaldson. He will probably get injured and have mediocre numbers, but he has done well in the past. He's playing for a contract, and has some talent. Probably nothing will come of it, but its a better chance than a lot of players.

We will see. Adrian Nieto looked like a decent back up catcher a couple of years ago.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 12:28 PM) Not sure why you'd think a 24-year old would regress offensively. But I am also not sure what you mean he'd be regressing from. He's got a good batter's eye and a quiet swing. He will be light-hitting, but remember too, this is a guy who posted some of the lowest K-rates in the minors in the entire Sox system, and had the best K:BB rates in the system multiple years. And you can't tell much about someone's framing in 30-ish games. Narvaez won't hit homers. But given his other defensive skills he's likely to improve in the framing department. Flowers wasn't good at it when he reached the majors either. He wasn't released - the Sox got him in the MiLB Rule 5. It was just a reserve roster protection numbers game. I don't think Narvaez is a starter, but I do think he's a competent MLB backup C. I was talking about Ross being released. Narvaez had better offensive numbers last year with the Sox than he did at AA and AAA. That's why I feel he will regress, and ultimately won't hit enough to be a back up on a good team. I really doubt he has a .350 OBP again.

QUOTE (ptatc @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 11:52 AM) Fair enough. The bar for backup catcher is never very high. All you need to be is decent and have the pitchers like you. look at David Ross. how long was he in the MLB and I don't think he ever was very good. Not but he hit homers. Framed well. Those are 2 things Navaraez doesn't do yet. He was released a time or two IIRC. Framing obviously wasn't a thing for most of his career, but I think a good one leads to better results, and that helped him. If you are a good guy and a decent defensive catcher, I agree, you can last a long time as a back up, but those guys usually bounce around quite a bit.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 11:45 AM) Reed was never a complete failure at the major league level either. He was usually at least OK. It should be a caution to all those that think the White Sox already have the 2019 greatest rotation in baseball. Eaton and Davidson were similarly ranked as prospects. One turned out better than could be expected, the other went from 'when can he be called up and not be a super 2" to a AAA strikeout king with 2 White Sox AB in 3 years.

QUOTE (ptatc @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 11:37 AM) Doesn't mean he won't be a decent backup catcher. I don't believe he will. He's not a good framer. He hit OK, but has zero power, and will regress IMO offensively. Obviously the bar for a back up catcher isn't very high, I just think he is a guy that will probably have a tough time moving forward.

QUOTE (soxfan2014 @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 11:36 AM) Not really. I'd honestly rather see Saladino at second every day until Moncada is ready. I guess Lawrie could play third if Frazier gets dealt but I'd rather add a sign and flip or see what Davidson can do. Not calling you out but I don't understand why several people want to see Matt Davidson yet don't want anything to do with Avi Garcia playing in a rebuild. At least Avi failed in the major leagues. What is it about Matt Davidson that screams anything but in two weeks we will have seen more than enough, if it even takes that long? Yes his numbers improved his 4th year of AAA, but his OPS was still .001 lower than Leury Garcia's.

QUOTE (shipps @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 11:07 AM) What I would have loved more than anything would have been if they built a domed stadium. f*** bear weather. A dome would have had Super Bowls, Final 4's , Big Ten Football championships.

QUOTE (Middle Buffalo @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 11:01 AM) Said mostly in jest, but since attendance and loyalty is a hot button topic, I find it funny that it's ok for Chicago fans of other teams to go or not go based on performance of the team. But, when Sox fans stay home for a crappy team, it says something about their loyalty. People go to Bears games whether they suck or not. People go to Cubs games whether they suck or not. Since Michael Jordan, people go to Bulls games whether they suck or not. The Bears may be shifting, although it is still about a 15 year wait for season tickets. The Blackhawks will be interesting once their run ends. The White Sox need to at least make the WS and force people to buy season ticket packages for WS tickets to guarantee a rise.

QUOTE (steveno89 @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 10:56 AM) This board is starving for a Q update I think fans everywhere are starving for some action. There seems to be more decent players still looking for homes at this point than any year I can remember. A lot of teams still have a lot of work left.

People will forget Narvaez was even a White Sox in 2 years.

If being horrible means a 2.5 fWAR and 40 homers, sign me up for 25 horrible players on the roster.

QUOTE (GreenSox @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 09:34 AM) The Sox have plenty of guys already that they can work on flipping in July: the entire bullpen, Gonzalez, Lawrie, Melky, etc. Adding another guy will just be a distraction from the primary goal of figuring out which among the Saladinos, Tilsons etc are keepers going forward. They have a hard enough time making July trades as it is, and they should have an ample inventory should they decide to get serious in July trades this year. For the love of God, you don't always need to play for a full year to figure out if a guy can play or not. If there is a guy who can put up some numbers and perhaps get them a player at the deadling, it sure beats Coats beating you on the head in July showing he can't play full time at the major league level. I'm pretty sure the Sox have a decent idea whether or not they can play right now. It's sort of why certain prospects are targeted and they just don't take 10 random guys for their assets.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 09:26 AM) I dont think the fan base is split by baseball preference. People unloaded tickets because its cold and they suck. And it was less than 70% full. Christmas Eve had a lot to do with it as well. But if they were good, it would have been full.

QUOTE (illinilaw08 @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 09:17 AM) That feels short sighted to me. Pace had a great draft last year. The defense has made pretty steady progress despite not having a single DB of note. Sacrificing the long-term health of the franchise to win a couple games with Tony Romo doesn't do anything for the long-term stability of the franchise. The goal right now needs to be adding talented pieces and creating real depth, not selling out the rebuild in the hopes that you can be marginally competitive in '17. By the time they get more guys in, the guys you like now will be broken down or signed as free agents with other teams. This isn't baseball. They have to start winning. Kevin White, who knows. Leonard Floyd looks like a keeper, but 2 concussions already have to make you wonder how long he will be able to last. Why don't they have any DBs? Why hasn't Pace drafted a QB? This needs to happen this year, and they have to start winning. This tolerance for sucking for 5 or 10 years in hopes of being good for 2 or 3 is the short sided approach IMO. They have to come up big in the draft and bring in some free agents. Getting to 10-6 and a wild card should be attainable. I really doubt people would have been on board 2 years ago with Pace and Fox if they knew 6-10, 3-13, and maybe another 6-10 or 7-9. Trestman was 8-8 and 5-11 and that was as clueless as they could get.

QUOTE (Feeky Magee @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 07:43 AM) Montas is gonna be good I think I think the White Sox were convinced health would be a problem, and not necessarily with the rib issues he had in 2016. He had some knee issues they think had a lot to do with the weight he was carrying. He should be good if he can stay healthy, but that is the big question.

QUOTE (Middle Buffalo @ Dec 29, 2016 -> 06:37 AM) I've seen and heard fans calling for the end of Pace and/or Fox at various times in the last year. I find it odd since the fanbase is primarily made up of Sox and Cubs fans and a media that fully supports the short term tank for talent with an eye for a better future. Isn't that what the Bears have been doing? They've dumped guys like Gould, Slaussen, Marshall, Bennett and Briggs and replaced them with younger, cheaper talent. Yet, there doesn't seem to be any patience when the Bears lose. Side note - Soldier Field was pretty empty Saturday. Looked about 70% full. I guess the always loyal Cubs/Bears fans went to the game, and the hard to please Sox/Bears fans stayed home. Lovie Smith got fired and everyone was happy about it after going 10-6. They are 22-41 since. Another horrible year isn't going to play. This is the NFL where careers aren't long and free agency changes things in an instant. It's almost impossible to build a team to go on a long run. You have to be adjusting every year. It is more than fair Fox and Pace have their necks on the line in 2017. 3 top ten drafts and a boatload of cap space is plenty of material to base front office performance. The team needs to start winning.

It s hard enough having one starting caliber QB on your roster let alone 2. Not many back ups get traded to a starting situation and shine. Favre was one. The Bears don't need a pro bowler. They do need someone who won't lose them the game.

I don't see how Pace or Fox survive a 6-10 or 7-9 season in 2017. It is going to be hard avoiding that without a better QB.

What if the Bears traded down in the first round? A 1 and a 4 then might make some sense.

Hawk told Our Chuck on his podcast today, he wants to work 4 more seasons. That will give him parts of 8 decades in the game. Mercy!

QUOTE (Feeky Magee @ Dec 27, 2016 -> 03:12 PM) Can we not be bitter towards teams who decide not to give us what we're asking for? It's perfectly reasonable to decide not to give Francis Martes, Kyle Tucker and Joe Musgrove for Jose Quintana. According to Keith Law, that return is more than a little light.

QUOTE (Real @ Dec 27, 2016 -> 02:20 PM) anybody able to summarize the latest news/rumor? something about the yankees being the latest trade partner? any prospects named? Hahn has been on the phones to GMs everywhere doing his best Blago impression "I've got this thing and it's f***ing golden." "I'm just not giving it up for f***ing nothing

rabbit and Nightengale with White Sox leaks. They usually leak very little. Something is going to happen pretty soon. They don't want these guys with their names out there every day if there's a decent possiblility they are going to be on the team. Too much distraction.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Dec 27, 2016 -> 02:03 PM) That isn't him, though BF has posted from time to time. He is way more intellectual than that. So is a refrigerator box.