witesoxfan

QUOTE (GoodAsGould @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 07:16 PM) Which still irks me a bit when people call it such a great trade, I understand the cutting costs was a big reason for the trade but Carlos Lee was a good player if KW wanted he could of got more value for him. In the end the Whitesox won the World Series so I guess no reason to make a fuss about it though. I agree. I think had he tried, he could have gotten more value out of the Brewers, but that would have involved playing the waiting game, and he didn't want to have to wait and didn't beat around the bush. He got an offer that got him everything he needed and jumped on it. I also think when people look at the roster and mention how untalented it was, they are looking mainly at the offense. That rotation was very talented and the Sox finally had a 5th starter and it was the best defensive team of the decade (and probably quite a few more years beyond then). The bullpen had talent, but Politte, Cotts, and Hermanson came out of nowhere to have great years. At the same time, Marte had been a solid reliever for 3 years, Vizcaino was coming off of a solid season, and Takatsu was absolutely filthy the previous season; Marte was pretty terrible all around (3.77 ERA but with a 1.72 WHIP), Vizcaino was relegated to what seemed like mainly mopup duties after his blowup in April, and Takatsu bombed. It was the worst offense of any World Series winning team in the 00's though.

QUOTE (GoodAsGould @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 07:16 PM) Which still irks me a bit when people call it such a great trade, I understand the cutting costs was a big reason for the trade but Carlos Lee was a good player if KW wanted he could of got more value for him. In the end the Whitesox won the World Series so I guess no reason to make a fuss about it though. I agree. I think had he tried, he could have gotten more value out of the Brewers, but that would have involved playing the waiting game, and he didn't want to have to wait and didn't beat around the bush. He got an offer that got him everything he needed and jumped on it. I also think when people look at the roster and mention how untalented it was, they are looking mainly at the offense. That rotation was stacked and it was the best defensive team of the decade (and probably quite a few more years beyond then). The bullpen had talent, but Politte, Cotts, and Hermanson came out of nowhere to have great years. At the same time, Marte had been a solid reliever for 3 years, Vizcaino was coming off of a solid season, and Takatsu was absolutely filthy the previous season; Marte was pretty terrible all around (3.77 ERA but with a 1.72 WHIP), Vizcaino was relegated to what seemed like mainly mopup duties after his blowup in April, and Takatsu bombed. It was the worst offense of any World Series winning team in the 00's though.

You still don't want them yelling "f*** the Cubs, motherf***ers"

QUOTE (Brian @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 03:51 PM) The dumbest piece of sports writing ever. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/342457-...-was-dirty-pool I don't think people are going to think of the onside kick. They might remember it, but it's not going to be "forever associated" with the game.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 06:36 PM) Yup. That was a deal that would be hated if it were done right now. Lee made a lot of money, but what we got in return was pretty bad at that time. The actual value for Lee was terrible and people here will tell you exactly that, and said exactly that at the time. The caveat was always what the money would be spent on, because it freed up about $8 million. It was spent well.

Mike Mayock has Gerald McCoy as the #1 player in the country, probably because his name is easier to spell than Ndamukong Suh. (he actually thinks they are 1a and 1b)

QUOTE (shakes @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 01:31 PM) We'll see. It could happen. It's also possible that Kubel and Cuddyer can't repeat what they did last year, and Thome is there for insurance. All I was trying to say is there was no real market for him to get guaranteed at bats. That I can agree with.

QUOTE (ptatc @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 01:26 PM) You could be right but I don't think so. Which I respect. And I say close to 100 rather than the 120 or so that a full-time DH would normally get because I doubt he ever gets any playing time against left handed pitching, and Mauer is going to DH on days when he needs a day off from catching, which will take Thome out of the lineup too (though Gardenhire may try and work that out so Mauer gets his day off against a lefty, as both Kubel and Thome are horrible against left handed pitching). He may only play 50 games, or even less. We'll just to see.

QUOTE (ptatc @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 12:48 PM) They aren't going to bench Kubel, who also cannot play the field. With Young, Span and Cuddyer there's no room in the outfield anyway. Kubel played 58 games in the outfield last year, and that was when the Twins had Gomez too along with Young, Span, and Cuddyer. Delmon Young is a terrible defensive LFer - barely better than Kubel - and he is obviously much worse offensively than Jim Thome against right handed pitching. I still think Thome gets close to 100 games at DH next year, barring injury.

QUOTE (shakes @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 12:39 PM) I remember the talk when Thome was traded to the Dodgers that he wouldn't be back. The training staff doesn't think he can do it for another year. He went through a 6 hour therapy and stretching session before every game to get his back ready to play. He can't keep it up forever. Also, with his long swing that relies heavily on his timing, he wouldn't be very effective with a limited role. Regardless, of the fluff going around at Soxfest, they weren't bringing him back. And he took a small contract to be a bench player. I think that defined his market. He isn't Damon holding out for a two year contract and misplaying his market. That's all he could get if he wanted to continue to play. I still don't think Thome's a bench player in Minnesota.

If he signs up with Boras, you can bet your ass the Sox will have nothing to do with him.

I agree pretty much completely, and I think if there's one key to the White Sox 2010 season, it's the health and production of Carlos Quentin. He's really the only bat that I have no idea what I am getting out of right now that has the ability to change the complexion of an offense.

QUOTE (SHIPPS @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 07:41 AM) There should have been a couple posters that werent admin/mods. I nominate myself again.

QUOTE (FlaSoxxJim @ Feb 9, 2010 -> 11:34 PM) On the downside, I have to pitch a $50K project to county government tomorrow, and I'm limited to 5 minutes in which to do it. I'm thinking about riffing on Abbot and Costello's "Who's on First?" routine, and if I get some laughs maybe I'll get the money. . . Tell em you found Gilligan.

It's still pretty awesome though

JFP

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 12:08 PM) I think a lot of the frustration is with the idea of having only a two year window for this team...and the fact that we're starting out at a competitive disadvantage because of the DH situation, just as we limped out of the gate last year in CF, 3B and with Lillibridge getting many important at bats. I don't understand why everyone thinks the Sox only ever have like a 1-2 year window. Sure, there will be other guys leaving, but there will be others coming in at the exact same time. People thought the window was closing after 2007 and the Sox would need a massive overhaul, and they won the division in 2008. With the way the Central is currently set up, no team is set up to consistently win the division for years and years, and the Sox are young enough with enough core talent at the right age that they have a window of about 5 years to compete with this core of players, and they will be plugging new guys into holes all the time.

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 12:01 PM) only if Liriano has really turned a corner. I think our pitching is far better and that ultimately makes the difference. We'll see how Liriano looks in the Spring and during the season. He was great in Winter Ball against a ton of players who don't have a chance in hell at cracking the majors or are way past their primes.

QUOTE (JorgeFabregas @ Feb 10, 2010 -> 10:46 AM) Why look at Duensing's peripherals and not Pavano's? Pavano's peripherals were very good last year. He had a FIP of 4.13 and a very good K/BB ratio. It looks like he may have made a change in his pitching philosophy, too, with increased use of his changeup, which is one of his two plus pitches. He still put up a H/9 of greater than 10, and since coming to the AL in 2005, he's put up a H/9 of 10.9 in 345 innings. Not all of that can be blamed on poor defense. He doesn't walk a lot of hitters and he strikes out a decent amount, but he doesn't strike out enough to compensate for his very hittable stuff. Looking at his PitchFx numbers, he looks very much like he's become a junk or finesse pitcher. If he does get great defense this year in Minnesota - and it's possible with Harris/Punto-Hardy-Hudson-Morneau from 3B-1B though his outfield defense won't be as good - he could put up good numbers, but he's going to have to put up a H/9 of less than 10. That is obviously dependent upon his defense, but that comes with the territory of a guy pitching to his defense.

Poster of the Year and Drinking Buddy in 2007, and currently winning the Drunk poster award. Whether that means I'm progressing or regressing is just like, your opinion man.

QUOTE (3E8 @ Feb 9, 2010 -> 08:22 PM) I pointed out the similarities between ARod's and Beckham's swings' awhile ago without knowledge of this article. But they miss the main point which is that both hitters put backspin on the ball. ARod is the best I have seen at this and Beckham is the only White Sox I can remember to do this. Gordon is especially good at putting backspin on pitches away, which allows the ball to carry more and gives him the opposite field gap power we've seen. A hitter who implements a swing with a slightly downward plane requires better timing because the pitch is always coming in on a downward plane as well

QUOTE (SoxAce @ Feb 9, 2010 -> 02:21 PM) If the Twins would smart, they would call him up when Freddy Garcia pitches. That game sucked so f***ing much.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 9, 2010 -> 11:42 AM) Unfortunately, I can also argue against this, although this will be why they play the games. There are a number of issues one can bring up that are decent arguments for why the Twins rotation this year will be better than last year. 1. Injury. They lost Slowey after 90 innings last year. He's expected to be ready for ST. I think Slowey's a better pitcher than he showed last year, but he has to prove he's healthy, he still has his control, and he still has his velocity. His stuff was never that great, but his pinpoint control is huge to his game. If he doesn't have that, I think you can expect an ERA in the 4.50+ range again. Duensing's numbers in AAA - 57 games, 56 starts, 330.2 IP, 4.00 ERA (4.60 RA/9), 1.32 WHIP, 2.3 BB/9, 5.6 K/9, 2.5 K/BB, 0.8 HR/9. Looking at his peripherals from last season - 1.37 WHIP, 0.8 HR/9, 3.3 BB/9, 5.7 K/9 - I would say it's a near impossibility for him to repeat his 3.64 ERA from last season. Give the league a second time around on him, and he'll be back in the bullpen or AAA in no time. I understand that depth is nice, but if he puts up an ERA of 5 again, I won't have any problems with it. It all depends on how they cut the grass too. I seem to remember hearing that they want to cut it really short so it plays much faster than normal grass, very similar to the Metrodome. If that's the case, they better play good defense.

QUOTE (Pants Rowland @ Feb 8, 2010 -> 10:56 AM) Really? Or, are you just trying to bait me into watching it so I can be as miserable as every other guy that had to sit through it? The nude scene is cool and the final half hour is decent, but otherwise it's just a huge waste of time. Watch it if you want to kill a Saturday afternoon, I suppose, but I wouldn't suggest it.

I blame the beer for the comment.