harfman77

Some interesting players receiving QO's. 36 year old Michael Cuddyer and Francisco Liriano both received QO's today. Heres the list so far Melky Cabrera LF Michael Cuddyer 1B / RF Francisco Liriano Russell Martin C Victor Martinez 1B / DH Ervin Santana Max Scherzer James Shields Edit to add: Hanley Ramirez David Robertson Pablo Sandoval Nelson Cruz

No thanks on Victor. The cost is going to be too high for the twilight of his career in both money and the opportunity cost of the second round pick. He turns 36 next month and is reportedly looking for a four year deal, just too much risk in that for me. I would much rather have Sandoval at this point.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Nov 3, 2014 -> 01:25 PM) It is impossible to know. I'd tend to think 2015 would be better for us, as the Red Sox and Yankees are the two biggest spenders in baseball historically. I also think it is better because it gives the Sox the chance to do what the Yankees did this year and the Cubs did the year before and really maximize the number of high ceiling players that you bring in when absorbing the penalty. Since those players are all gone this season, the Sox would be sacrificing signing high level players for the next two years for one player. If you can sign three years worth of players then a Moncada signing makes sense.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Oct 23, 2014 -> 07:24 AM) I would love to do something like this. I don't think Reinsdorf would ever do it though. This will be something interesting to watch going forward. JR toed the line when Bud was commissioner as his friend and ally, but with Bud stepping down and some adversity between JR and the new commish already it will be interesting to see if he stays as committed to the spirit of the rules as he did before.

QUOTE (QuickJones81 @ Nov 2, 2014 -> 09:03 PM) Should the Sox go all in on Moncada? If you mean should the Sox forsake the rest of the international market and go for Moncada, I say no. If you think the Sox should make a strategic leap into the international market targeting several players knowing they are going to face penalties by signing Moncada I say yes. Sign four of the top 20 plus Moncada and it will be worth the overages.

QUOTE (nitetrain8601 @ Nov 3, 2014 -> 12:08 PM) So how much would the Sox be able to offer? Honestly, if what you guys are saying is true, he may just wait a year as he can start a bidding war. If the Sox are not going to go over the spending cap, they have no chance at getting him, whichever year he is declared a FA. It would be better for the Sox if he were not a FA until July so that they could maximize the number of prospects that they bring in if they are going to surpass the limits.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 22, 2014 -> 10:21 AM) The problem with dealing him is that he's at about the perfect path to think he could take over from Alexei after 2016 when the missile hits FA. Maybe we could put our spectacular defensive Rondon on that path but it is nice having Anderson sitting there as an obvious heir-apparent. I agree, but it also gives you two years to come up with an alternative solution as well. If the Sox go after someone like Oscar Taveras this offseason - who is reportedly in Mike Matheny's doghouse - than Anderson would likely need to be included in the deal. In the mean time you can keep Sanchez at AAA playing short and deal for or draft another SS.

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 22, 2014 -> 03:23 PM) so when the sox select #8. and according to you, the top 4 arms are off. etc ..... who are the arms you are looking at now. I know many intangibles may happen between now and draft day. just curious. Right now, Aiken, Matuella, Bickford, are the three college guys and Justin Hooper as a prep are the guys that I would be interested in at this point. I am not a fan of the smaller bodied guys like Allard and Buehler. I think any of those four have the chance to make the majors in the next two years, given their current skill level and ability to throw with velocity.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Oct 22, 2014 -> 03:05 PM) I'm guessing Mautella is #3? Yes

BA published their top 50 prospects for the 2015 draft. Of note: 1. Brendan Rodgers 2. Brady Aiken 5. Walker Buehler 8. Kolby Allard 10 Nathan Kirby 13 Alex Bregman 14 Daz Cameron 15 Carson Fulmer 16 Ian Happ 20 Phil Bickford 21 DJ Stewart 28 Kyle Tucker http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/201...-arms-dominate/ After number one, the next four on the list are college pitchers.

QUOTE (shysocks @ Oct 22, 2014 -> 10:58 AM) Saying Domonic Brown has the potential to hit better is really stretching the word potential to its limits. He stunk just as badly as Morales last year, except he doesn't have Morales' track record or the excuse of signing with a team in the middle of the year. Alvarez, I agree, is an interesting option. Better than Dunn, not Morales. Morales is much better at putting the ball in play, but doesn't have the big power potential of Dunn, Brown, or Alvarez. Alvarez and Brown are both much more athletic than Morales and can at least run the bases, Morales has been more of a monolith since he injured his ankle. I like Morales a lot, but I am not sure how much he fits this team as constructed.

QUOTE (bear_brian @ Oct 22, 2014 -> 10:26 AM) I don't disagree with your question, but we have to find a DH who can replace Dunn with the potential for better production but without tat terrible salary. Morales is a calculated gamble, with a good hitting history. To that end, I would rather pursue Pedro Alvarez or Dom Brown, both have Dunn like power with potential to hit better. They will also both cost less from a financial and prospect standpoint.

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 22, 2014 -> 10:09 AM) interesting thought. for what its worth, I have concerns with his arm. Maybe a young Juan Pierre then?

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Oct 15, 2014 -> 02:39 PM) I'd say there's a better chance than that. I really like what I saw from Sanchez, but I think the organization is much higher on Johnson. Perhaps as a way to limit service time, he stays down for a while, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if Johnson makes it. I think the best man takes that job no matter what. With the injuries, I think Johnson just needs more AB's in the minors.

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 22, 2014 -> 09:59 AM) don't get me wrong, I see Anderson as the heir at the SS position. I can even deal with his errors if he doesn't improve. I am in the hoping that he will get better. I am wondering at this point if Anderson will be the key piece in a Sox deal this off-season. RH has done a nice job of amassing some assets and he will start cashing some in to improve the ML roster at some point. Just idle speculation on my part, but I believe that will be the first name brought up in trade talks when the Sox look to upgrade their lineup.

I see no reason to dump Danks at this point. He is not blocking anyone from the majors at this point. His salary is large for a backend starter, but, I am not sure whatever it would cost the Sox to dump him would be worth it. Danks is the staff veteran now and can be useful in integrating guys like Rodon, Beck, and Danish into the majors. When the other starters like Rodon and Noesi start hitting arb salaries he will be a FA.

It was a good trade, though Davidson had some alarming contact issues as a big red flag, he was a top 100 prospect with a ton of RH power.

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 22, 2014 -> 06:09 AM) I wonder if he can play in the outfield. Its doubtful given that he does not have good speed and is not really thought of as a good defender at all. Though with him at 2B, it would give the Sox a chance to turn Micah into Carl Crawford when he was young.

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Oct 15, 2014 -> 08:33 AM) My whole point is that it is precisely NOT discussing players of certain values. It's discussing acquiring players based on things that are NOT related to their value. Except that it is. He has a track record of using PED's in contract years and then falling off the map, which should make anyone take pause when looking at his number from this season. There will always be room for question and speculation because of his past. I would say the same thing about Nelson Cruz and Peralta as well. This is all moot anyway, he is going to receive a QO and that coupled with the money that will be required to sign him will not make the acquisition worth it.

I like DJ Stewart as a fast moving LH OF'er with plus power and really good bat to ball skills. Good athlete and the best college bat in the draft. Happ is interesting as well, though he has not player the competition that Stewart has. If the draft board has the big four arms off the board, I want a college bat over one of the Vandy arms or Kirby.

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 20, 2014 -> 01:10 PM) Noesi was on someone scrap when the sox claimed him. I am not trying to argue this, but to point out, the sox pitching depth is not so deep. the sox still can find gems on the waiver list and the non tender list. back that up with some fa signing and the sox can pull it off. the biggest problem I am hoping that the sox not to fall in is being complacent like last yr. not getting more options. Thats true, but I think Noesi shows a lot of promise and he cost the Sox nothing. Those high reward/low investment type of signings are exactly what the Sox need to keep making, many will fail - Cleto, Paulino - but if you can hit with a couple you have really put the organization in a great position to succeed. The Cubs took a guy two years ago that was a low investment type of guy and half a season later they traded him for a guy that was formerly the Orioles #1 prospect and looks like he has the makings of a solid #2-3 starter. Big free agency acquisitions do not really pan out all that often.

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 17, 2014 -> 09:41 AM) i am a little confuse. would you rather sign Tomas or Fernandez? Here is a snippet from BA on Jose Fernandez, who's whereabouts are currently unknown: "During the 2013-14 season playing for Matanzas in Serie Nacional, the 5-foot-10, 185-pound Fernandez hit .326/.482/.456 with 65 walks and 10 strikeouts in 314 plate appearances, ranking second in the league in OBP. This season, which started in September, Fernandez was off to a .315/.415/.426 start with only one strikeout in 65 plate appearances." http://www.baseballamerica.com/internation...jose-fernandez/

QUOTE (scs787 @ Oct 20, 2014 -> 09:34 AM) Curious as to why you say that? If he can't indeed play the OF then I agree because I doubt either he or Abreu become a full time DH. That's why I was asking about the report of his ability to play the OF. I know he's RH but so is Tomas. Is he simply not ML ready? I can't find much about the guy. I don't think his bat is good enough to warrant the cost and a roster spot over someone like Andy Wilkins. I just don't see him as a fit, I believe he was Abreu's backup in Cuba, and doesn't really have the big bat profile of a lot of the other players that are being discussed. He is a guy that you would take a chance on with a minor league deal, but not throw a large signing bonus at.

QUOTE (thxfrthmmrs @ Oct 20, 2014 -> 09:34 AM) Competitive balance pick. Which I am not sure if any team has actually traded those picks before. It happened last season when the Marlins traded their pick to the Pirates and then again after the draft the Marlins sent their pick to the Astros as part of the Cosart trade. The A's also sent one to the Red Sox in the Lester deal.

QUOTE (shysocks @ Oct 17, 2014 -> 01:28 PM) Teams use five starting pitchers and we have three holes. One, we're slotting Rodon into despite having no idea if he's going to earn it. Apparently we're also saving room for a whole bunch of prospects who are months, years, or forever away. If you can guarantee me that one of Bassitt, Beck, and Danish will be a valuable MLB starter in 2016, then I'll agree that we should play the sign-and-trade game, but I think you're really overrating the talent of those guys. There's room for a pitcher on a multi-year deal. I don't agree with your premise that there are three holes in the rotation. I feel that we are sitting pretty good with four spots with Sale, Q, Noesi, and the Danks/Rodon spot. If Danks can get back to pitching as he did in the first half of the season than the Sox are sitting in a pretty good position. I would like to sign a guy to a short term deal to bridge the gap to Rodon and serve as insurance in case Danks does not improve. Beck and Bassit will likely be ready to crack the rotation mid-summer and if EJ recovers he will be ready before that, no reason to spend money to block them at this point. Payroll space this season needs to be used to improve the lineup and team defense which will help to boost the rotation as well.