witesoxfan

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 11:31 AM) It means there was no one similar to take away at-bats from Dunn, so it's not a valid comparison. You had two 1b/DH guys, one lefty and one righty. Now you have three 1b/DH guys, one lefty and two righties. By June, there sure was. Anybody would have been an upgrade over Dunn at that point in time.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 11:16 AM) As I stated, the compensation should not be a deterrent signing him. If you would sign him without the compensation being in place, losing that pick shouldn't be the difference. No, the pick absolutely can and should be the difference. Seriously, the Sox could give up their 1st round pick this year and likely not regret it, but that doesn't mean they should. For a team as starved for prospects as the White Sox are, giving up draft picks is not a wise decision.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 11:04 AM) Hopefully he is one to buck the trend, but the odds are stacked against the second rounder being a big contributor. History shows it. They have only signed 3 second rounders in team history with career WARs over 2. 2 of them are relievers Drafted 43 and 23 years ago. The other is Ryan Sweeney. Do you really think the #53 pick has a better chance of contributing to winning than Curtis Granderson? I can understand people having reasons for hoping the Sox don't sign him, but if you would sign if you didn't have to surrender the pick, your opinion shouldn't change because the pick is attached. History is against the first round pick ever contributing. Does that mean you should just forfeit every draft pick?

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 10:45 AM) Just pointing out if the Sox signed Granderson and forfeited the pick, Granderson has a far better chance of being a better player for the team than that pick does. If you want to argue he isn't worth the money or whatever, that's fine, as far as the pick, it should be insignificant. No, it is significant. The Sox minor league system is still bad and they need to supplement it. Giving up this pick is essentially trading a prospect for Granderson.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 10:40 AM) My favorites are Both Galaxies, Xenoblade, Tales of Symphonia, and MarioKart Wii. I know, big surprise Big Atari fan I see

Chase Headley was the 66th pick in 2005. Albert Pujols was a 13th round pick. Mike Piazza was a 62nd round pick. Yada yada yada If teams knew guys were going to bomb, they wouldn't take them. The White Sox have a weak minor league system right now and need to improve it. In a hypothetical situation, would people trade, say, Scott Snodgress for Jonny Gomes right now?

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 10:23 AM) That would be a huge upgrade over the past few years. But all things remaining equal, where does Gillaspie figure into all this? Is it still his position to lose at this point or is it Keppinger's? Pains me to think this is the only competition for 3b. What a gaping hole that is. I guess that depends on a lot of things. As of now, I think he's the incumbent starter, but he could easily be unseated by a lot of players, some of whom may not even be in the organization. That is a definite question mark.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 10:17 AM) Yeah, that's why I said he'd need to be epically bad. And even then I think they've give him a little longer than that. Barring that or injury, he's playing 130+ games. And even if he's demoted, he's still playing full time, but again he'd have to be REALLY bad. The ultimate kicker in me not caring about this move is that both the organization and Konerko himself have said he's going to be a part time player and Konerko said he would not have come back if he were going to be a full time player. He is not going to play a lot.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 10:15 AM) Wes Whisler Craig Italiano Chad Huffman Kyle Lotzker Seth Lintz Brooks Pounders Todd Cunningham Dwight Smith Collin Wiles Andrew Knapp The last 10 #53 picks. The draft pick should not be a deterrent in signing Granderson. No, but Granderson's age and the quality of the White Sox should.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 10:07 AM) It is paranoia because none of those examples is the slightest bit like Abreu. You want a good comp? Because there is one on the team - his name is Adam Dunn. Dunn was signed as a free agent 1B/DH for 4/56. Abreu was signed as a free agent 1B/DH for 6/68, so even more years and money. Now, Dunn started 2011 OK, had his illness and surgery, then came back terrible. Stayed terrible throughout the year - like epic-level terrible. And it wasn't until very late in the season they even started to cut back his play, and that was by just a little bit. And he still came back as a starter the next year. That is what you should use as the analog here. Abreu would need to be epically, historically bad, and even then his playing time won't diminish much until very late in the year. If he came out and hit .100 for the first 2 months of the season, I think they'd consider sending him to AAA for a short period of time at that point. I don't foresee that happening.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 07:11 AM) Isn't there an out here? Yankees agree to pay A-Rod half of the $86M left on his contract, A-Rod agrees to leave MLB and never come back, but does not have to admit to any PED use. Seems easier than the year or longer court battle this is headed for. To me, that would essentially be a plea bargain and an admission of some guilt. So he's out $43 million, he never gets to play again, and he's a PED user. May as well fight it. If he loses, he's made a lot of money, and if he wins, he gets even more money.

QUOTE (He_Gawn @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 08:16 AM) Makes more sense now that you've explained it. I thought that you lived way up north, so I figured rotting wouldn't be a problem. Shotgun season is now over here in Indiana. Got a buck 30 minutes into opening day, then the last day I see two monster bucks that I'm not allowed to legally shoot.... That's always how it goes. If you hadn't taken that first one, you would have never seen the last two. My brother-in-law did the exact opposite of you last year - saw a nice buck the first day - but he didn't shoot, assuming he'd see another good one later. Nope. Take the first good one you see.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 09:20 AM) Frankly...no. I don't think they'll try to play him everyday but I think they'll play him often enough that it infuriates me. I'm so used to it from this team I just expect it. From your tone, it seems like it's going to infuriate you if he plays as much as Billy Crystal did in Spring Training.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 09:28 AM) I'm not saying "becomes a starter". Pushes Abreu down to 400-ish PA's? I could totally believe that and that would be almost as dumb as putting Chris Sale in the bullpen was. You changed the game there to say that something has never happened that isn't what I'm fearing. Sending Abreu to the bench 2-3 times a week is what I'm afraid of and it's exactly what I'm expecting. 400-ish PAs is 100 games. Do you really, truly, honestly, 100% believe that Konerko and Dunn themselves are going to keep Abreu out of 40% of the team's games?

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 09:21 AM) I do think it's hilarious at one point we refused to bring back Jim Thome because we wanted a "rotating DH" and now we'll enter 2014 with two legitimate DHs on our roster. I'm not going to complain too much about bringing Paulie back, but I seriously hate when people say "it's the 25th man on the roster so who cares" to justify the move. I'm sorry, but even the last guy on the bench has a role to play and can impact the team's W/L regardless of what his WAR might be. Context comes in play here. For example, if Jordan Danks can get to one more ball than Viciedo can late in a game he can have a significant impact outcome of that particular game. The same can go for a pinch runner with elite speed or a backup with tons of defensive flexibility. These guys can have a big impact on close games and how teams do in those games can ultimately make or break a season. Bringing back Konerko limits what our bench will be capable of. Maybe it doesn't matter in this particular season, but if we're legitimately trying to win this move makes [no] sense IMO. And I agree 100% with that.

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 09:14 AM) Fine see ya in the 10th year of the rebuild when we are the Royals and the Pirates. Look at the trickle down effect of not signing Thome for one year. It's been chronicled before. Signing PK is one less move the Sox could've made. How do I know the road not taken could make all the difference ? Thome was going to be the starting DH for the White Sox with Kotsay moving to DH. Thome ultimately signed with the Sox most direct rival and had a monstrosity of a season. Konerko was only going to sign with the White Sox. He is going to be a bench player. Those situations are not comparable. I liken this signing to that Kosuke Fukudome. QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 09:15 AM) Besides, expecting much from the Rule 5 is dreaming. Agree 100%. If you can get a bench player out of it, then you are lucky. Most Rule 5 picks are returned to their original teams within the first 2 weeks of Spring Training. The Sox Rule 5 pick last year was so bad, the Angels didn't want him back and he was eventually released.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 08:46 AM) I know, I know. It's the same reason I can say with confidence that the veteran will get his at bats instead of the rookie at 1b - that's standard managing. Konerko himself has said he couldn't handle that kind of load. Do you not believe him?

QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 09:04 AM) It pretty much handcuffs what the Sox can do in the rule V draft as they wont be able to use that spot to carry an extra player that could contribute to the roster long term. If there is no one the Sox think could help long term, it makes sense. But this signing does nothing to move the organization forward. If the Sox take Carlos Perez in the Rule 5 draft, like I believe they will, they can send Phegley to the minors. If they take a reliever, they can send Petricka or Webb down. I fail to see how this affects their rationale in the Rule 5.

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 08:58 AM) The who is not the point and you know it . The point is we've been fed garbage about competting and getting younger ,more versatile , more speed , better D the future and now we're getting older, less versatile , slower, bad D and the past. I have no idea what the butterfly-effect could be on this team ,what one move that might have been made can effect other moves. If the Sox had intentions of being seriously competitive, then yes, I'd agree. Right now, I ultimately believe this move to be meaningless. They know they are going to struggle/suck this year. If they win 80 games, people will be doing jumping jacks. This is a move to give a veteran player and a guy who has been with the organization almost 15 years a farewell, even if he does not believe it to be a farewell. I'm sure that the Sox will have an offer out to Buehrle too. If he were the 12th pitcher on the roster 3-4 years from now, would you be this upset?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 08:33 AM) You said in the same post you want to see them take steps forward and then congratulated them on looking backward. Who did you have in mind for the 25th roster spot? For all we know, this move prevents the White Sox from using Marcus Semien as a utility infielder because Ventura "likes his hustle" or whatever. Maybe they use it on Brent Morel. What difference does it make in the end? This move is meaningless. Anybody the Sox would have used it on is better off getting regular ABs in AAA or AA. QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 08:34 AM) Yeah that's what I've been hearing this whole off season from the countless ruminations on signing free agents and making trades from all our fans "we want a classy move to hell with getting better or competing." Again I ask, what is the ultimate effect? Whose roster spot is this affecting?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 08:32 AM) Plus if he ever gets hot we can have him split time with Dunn at the DH spot since we don't have another RH hitting DH to soak up 100....wait... Tyler Flowers, in his career vs LHP (188 PAs): .185/.241/.353/.593 And I don't think I've ever seen a White Sox manager use his backup catcher in the same lineup as his starting catcher unless there were 3 catchers on the roster.

QUOTE (TheFutureIsNear @ Dec 4, 2013 -> 05:59 PM) I'm not as high on him as most. I see his future as an above average 2B. Highly doubt he ever has the bat to stick at 3B. With that said, I really don't give a damn about Beckham anymore so if Semien were to start there I'd be fine with it. Not a big deal to me if he starts in AAA either though. First, if you believe he can be an above average 2B, then you are just as high on him as most. Secondly, the nature of the beast suggests that if you believe he can be an above average 2B, then he can stick at 3B too (not that you'd necessarily want to) MLB splits last year: 2B: .263/.323/.387/.710 3B: .260/.324/.412/.735 If he is even a .260/.330/.400 guy, his bat can play at 3B.

QUOTE (ewokpelts @ Dec 4, 2013 -> 05:07 PM) Why? Because it's $1 million for a catcher who is solid defensively, knows the staff, is well liked in the clubhouse, and can hit the ball 500 feet.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 5, 2013 -> 08:22 AM) And people are more than happy to call the Keppinger signing a debacle/disaster/choose your word. "It's the last guy on the roster" doesn't make it any less wrong. How about meaningless? Because frankly, this year, I could not care less about the Konerko signing. I want to see the organization taking steps forward. What the White Sox look like matters only slightly to me, because they are going to be bad. If they were intending on being good, it's a completely different story. They are paying a debt of gratitude to Konerko for almost 15 years of service with the White Sox. It's a classy move.

QUOTE (chisoxfan310 @ Dec 4, 2013 -> 07:52 PM) Anyone think that they trade off Keppinger and Elmore makes the roster for his ability to play everywhere and emergency catch? Bench: Back up catcher Konerko/Dunn (based on who starts that day) Garcia (IF/OF) Elmore (IF/OF/emergency catcher) Chances are, Konerko or Dunn on the bench are still going to get an at-bat every game hitting for the catcher late in the game. I know teams are iffy about taking the starting catcher out of the game, but with an emergency catcher like Elmore on the team, it could make them not worry about that so much if he only had to catch for an inning after the replacement were to get injured (big if that the backup would come in and get hurt). Just a thought and another option for the team. You need left handed power off the bench. I strongly doubt both Garcia and Elmore make the roster. I think Danks is making the roster next year no matter what. QUOTE (Hawkfan @ Dec 4, 2013 -> 09:19 PM) Over under on dongs next year? 17 Way, way under. I'd be surprised if he gets to 9. Unless you are expecting him to hit homers at a Bonds-ian pace. QUOTE (daggins @ Dec 4, 2013 -> 11:01 PM) I think it is a dumb baseball move from an organization that desperately needs a plethora of smart baseball moves. In my mind it is akin to the Mariners signing Bloomquist. It isn't a huge investment, but it is a poorly conceived and wasteful one. Come on, let's call a spade a spade. The Bloomquist signing is akin to the White Sox signing Keppinger.