witesoxfan

It's entirely possible that Alexei may be a bit banged up too. Not bad enough to really even be reported but enough so that a couple days off would do him some good.

QUOTE (Jenks Heat @ Jun 12, 2008 -> 08:35 AM) Anderson and Uribe could use more playing time and they will get it. Anderson will end up being a more well rounded hitter than Fields when all is said and done. Fields should be left in the minors to pad his stats and should by some miracle Crede resign, traded in a Matt Garza / Delmon Young type of move. I like Josh Fields more than Joe Crede but I think Joe Crede is a better option for the longevity of this club as Fields could net some really young needs for this team (i.e. arm to replace Contreras in 2010). I'll back off my initial feelings about how trading Josh Fields would be the dumbest thing KW could do...it'd be very easy to mess up, but in the right circumstance, it'd be perfectly fine by me. I will change that to resigning Crede to a market contract as the dumbest thing KW could do. If by some miracle he can resign him to a 3/$30 deal with two options, that'd be fine, but I'd say that's way, way below his market value with Boras as his agent. Personally, I can't trust a surgically repaired back over the duration of a long contract. Further, I don't know how anyone can say Crede is better for the "longevity" of the club. He will probably be the better player if he's healthy, but if he's injured - which is a very legitimate concern in the same regard - Josh Fields would probably have to hit .210 or worse to be worse than an average replacement player. Finally, with the way the Sox have been able to find arms within the past 3-4 years, I don't think finding a starter to replace Contreras should be a high priority at this point in time. If anything, I think you see Broadway step into the rotation full time next year while there are a couple others coming up in the system who could possibly take his place if he bombs with Contreras being dealt away (this is something I wouldn't bank on in the least, because I've never really heard anything bad about Contreras from anyone in the White Sox organization). I want to see what Fields can do over the next month or so, but I think, at this point in time, I'd bet more money on a 3Bman being brought in from outside the organization to take over next year rather than the Sox having Crede or Fields there.

QUOTE (tommy @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 09:46 PM) I think Cubs have some serious competition coming up with Toronto and Tampa Bay. They also play some team in first place, I forget who though

QUOTE (ptatc @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 08:34 AM) Jim left the team on his own for more money. That will get alot of players boooed. Most fans don't like players who seem greedy and leave. It's mostly just Sox fans who blame management when guys like Ordonez leave for more money. Most fans on other teams blame the player. Like someone said earlier Sox fans are a fickle bunch. I for one don't boo anyone who is working thier rear off. I my boo a bad play but not the player everytime. I recall like a $20-30 million difference and a couple years on the contract too...maybe it's cuz I was pretty young still, but it seemed like a no-doubter to me. It also depends on how the player gets more money. If the player legitimately gets a better offer - say Bartolo Colon after the 2003 season - I wouldn't be as mad about it. The Sox offered him like 3/$36 while the Angels offered 4/$52...that's an additional year along with a higher average salary. I think it would suck to lose Colon, but I'd respect it. In the case of Magglio Ordonez, where he fries any chance the team had at resigning him by hiring an agent that just really does not work with the team, then I think he deserves a booing. Good for him for getting his money, but f*** him too for ruining the chance of returning. (it was very hard to think of Sox examples...they generally either trade the players in the last year of the contract or resign them) I also wouldn't have booed Frank Thomas upon returning to the Cell if the Sox had made a legitimate offer for him to return and he'd gotten a pretty lucrative deal on the free agent market. Neither happened, so that's pretty much meaningless. I would compare those two in that regard though. QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 02:21 PM) Agrees with Hizzle. But I will say that no way in hell, even with the dominant pitching, we sport a 15 game lead in August (turned out we needed just about all of that 15 game cushion just to hold the Indians off) without Pod's all-star first half. Especially with most of the other regulars struggling offensively most of the first half. There are a several hundred #1 reasons why that team won the division. You can't just point out one factor and say without this the team yada yada...if you take out literally any player on that team and replace him with someone just a little worse, the Sox wouldn't have won the division.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jun 14, 2008 -> 02:02 AM) His stuff wasn't bad. Didn't have the really good curve ball or change up. Got beat on a few fastballs and a curveball he left up to Hawpe that he put over the centerfield fence easily. Not his best outing, was just beat on a few pitches on a night where the ball was really carrying. I think we're going to see more outings like this in our ballpark as the weather warms up if he doesn't have his biting curve. Absolutely. I actually have no problem at all with the performance other than his H/HR ratio being 1 (which, you know, isn't usually good). Crazy to think that he actually lowered his BABIP tonight. I was telling SF1 earlier that I expect his ERA to end at somewhere around 4.25-4.50 with 30+ homers allowed, but I really like him for the future if he can start to consistently throw his curve and change.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 14, 2008 -> 02:43 AM) Not terrible, but you have to get some hits on a consistent basis to help our lineup like we need him to help our lineup. Thus far this season, he's made way way way too many outs. He's actually making fewer outs than the average player on the Sox, though not by much. Swisher's OBP - .337 Sox team OBP - .332 He's just not hitting for any power, which is the big thing the Sox need him to do.

What was the deal with Gavin tonight? From the splits it looks like he had decent stuff but control issues...trying to blow hitters away with chest high 92 MPH fastballs?

QUOTE (Tony82087 @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 06:29 PM) I know Thome has made a s*** load of money in his career, but I don't see him walking away from 13 million next year.(It might be more) I assume you believe his option will vest, which I'd agree with, and I agree that I think he'll play again. I still wouldn't completely rule out the possibility that he does retire though. I'm not entirely sure where he lives in the offseason, but if he continues struggling as he has this year into next year, I'd be surprised if he signed a contract in a place other than say Chicago or Cleveland following his current deal. As I recall, one of the reasons he accepted the trade to Chicago is because it's near where he grew up - Peoria - even if he was a Cubs fan (again, as I recall) as a child.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 11:54 PM) Just say no to Lofton. Go with what we have or look elsewhere. Anderson really isn't a bad option if Swish continues to struggle. Swish has cooled off again. One for his last 12 after going 8 for 14 vs. Minn's s***ty pitchers. which only equates to a .346 average over his past however many at bats, and that's not including the times he's walked going into tonight's game, Swisher had an OPS of 1.072 in June. Only 11 games, but let's not suggest he's terrible again all of a sudden

I also don't understand why one of the bench players would have to go. I'd personally just send down Russell, but maybe that's just me.

in conclusion

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 02:12 PM) The problem with trading a guy like Cook is...as a late bloomer, his value is significantly depressed compared to where it would be if he was putting up similar numbers at a normal age for his leagues. In other words, it makes very little sense to trade a guy like him until he's been up to the big leagues, because no team is going to give you anything more than a pittance for him because of his age until he shows off in the bigs. If a team trades for him, they're trying to get him as a steal because of his age, but they're not going to risk anything really useful on him. You might find some use for him by dealing him to a team that's selling off at the deadline, but his value would still be suppressed by his age. Which is why I mentioned a bench player or a reliever. The Sox got Alex Cintron for Jeff Bajenaru, who, at his projected ceiling, was a middle reliever or potential setup guy, but he was still like 28 when the Sox traded him. Cintron was a respectable backup middle infielder in 2006. Going a bit further back, the Sox traded Ryan Meaux when he was 26 and in AA ball for Geoff Blum, who was versatile as hell and had a bit of power in his bat (a poor man's Juan Uribe, if you will)...both were quite valuable to the Sox bench. I would expect a slight upgrade in terms of offensive production, but that's about the type of player I'd expect to get for David Cook, and I'd have no problem doing that whatsoever. If you don't get the type of deal you're looking for, don't trade him. Versatile outfielders are always handy hanging out in the minors.

QUOTE (Jenks Heat @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 11:10 AM) That draft is why I wish the GM (was it Larry Himes) is such an enigma man he could judge talent. McDowell, Ventura, Thomas, and Fernandez in 4 consecutive years. You'd be hardpressed to find a more incredible streak than that.

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Jun 12, 2008 -> 01:33 PM) I'm sure Kenny Williams would love to trade him for David Weathers. I'm not sure what your obsession with David Weathers is, but I don't think KW has one. You always make it seem like KW is going to trade every other prospect for him. Besides that point, Cook is an older outfielder...he looks quite a bit like a late bloomer right now, but the Sox have Dye, Swisher, Quentin, Anderson, and, if you want to consider him, Owens too. Trading Cook either alone or in a package for a potential upgrade anywhere - be it the bench or bullpen (if that's even necessary) - is completely logical.

QUOTE (jenks45monster @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 02:10 AM) Scott Merkin writes last night (Thursday, June 12th) that Loaiza is expected to be released and Russell brought up. http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/news/artic...sp&c_id=cws However, Joe Cowley writes this morning (Friday, June 13th) that Loaiza just needs to step it up. http://www.suntimes.com/sports/baseball/wh...soxnt13.article Is it unofficial yet or what's going on? Merkin writes for the Sox MLB website. Cowley writes for a s***ty Chicago newspaper. You tell me which is more legitimate.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 02:36 AM) He should be cheered wildly. I forgot he was on that team. Ex-Sox tend to kill us. Even ex Cubs like Floyd. We're f***ed. Scotty will have a big series. Rats. I hope that's thick sarcasm because Scott Podsednik won't kill anything this weekend but a fly, and he might not even kill that.

QUOTE (knightni @ Jun 12, 2008 -> 11:18 PM) Sox fans are a weird bunch sometimes. We complain and hate on the players when they are on our team, then give them standing O's when they come back on new teams. Actually, I'd say Cleveland is a weird bunch...they booed Jim f***ing Thome. The only reason I'd ever boo Thome is if it were late in a season, he were on the Indians/Tigers/Twins/any other team preventing the Sox from a playoff appearance, and he had a clutch hit. It's not as if he did an inhumane thing; he took a much, much more lucrative offer from the Philadelphia Phillies rather than resigning with an Indians club that was in the middle of a rebuilding period, and then accepted a trade to the White Sox. He didn't ask to go to the White Sox, he just said he'd be OK with it. When the Sox traded Garland to Los Angeles, I'm sure he got a standing ovation for his previous experience with the Sox. I'd say, in that regard, the Sox are like the norm. Boo current players who suck (or any other number of circumstances), but if they did something very good for the team at one point in time or another or just left the team on good terms, they'll cheer them when they come back. If Scott Podsednik put on a Sox jersey tomorrow, I'd boo him out of town, but with a Rockies jersey, I'd cheer my ass off.

QUOTE (juddling @ Jun 11, 2008 -> 03:14 PM) Censor bar art vidoe probably NSFW.......ads on site definitely NSFW the meatspin caught me off guard...hilarious

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Jun 12, 2008 -> 06:10 AM) So my friend is throwing a weekend party at her lake house this weekend, free beer and free food. Does it get better than that? topless cocktail servers?

yeah, that should be a good one I'd buy you a shot, but the whole me-being-20 thing doesn't work out so well, and the you-being-5000-miles-away-from-me doesn't help either. Just do your best to remember it...and do your best to hit the toilet too.

QUOTE (soxfan3530 @ Jun 12, 2008 -> 05:21 PM) hopefully nothing, but he is killing my fantasy team right now!!! I believe we need a fathom sighting

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Jun 12, 2008 -> 09:08 PM) What I find the most frustrating is that this is at least the third time and maybe more this year that our stellar relief corp gives up a walk off homer to lose I'd blame the offense first. The bullpen is allowed to give up a run every now and then.

QUOTE (BearSox @ Jun 12, 2008 -> 09:13 PM) Lofton showed last year he can still play... I'd love to see him signed and Uribe dumped. I think that would be the most shortsighted move the Sox could make. Uribe's not going anywhere. You'd see Russell demoted to Charlotte before anything else.

QUOTE (BearSox @ Jun 12, 2008 -> 01:03 PM) I like to play arm-chair GM a lot, and I was thinking about next year. I personally feel one of Konerko or Dye will be gone, and if it's Konerko, Dye will be moved to 1B. Then, I'd shift my attention to Andre Ethier. IMO, he'd be a perfect fit for us. The only problem is getting him from LA. He might be expandable due to the fact LA is loaded with talent and they have Jones and Pierre locked into tough to move contracts. I don't know how realistic my idea is, but one can hope. With Ethier, I'd have the outfield as (from left-right) Ethier, Swisher, Quentin. Vs. tough lefties, I'd sub in Anderson for Ethier and have him swap positions with Swisher. When on the road in big outfields, I'd have Anderson replace one of Konerko/Dye, Swisher, or Thome (if it is one of Dye/Konerko/Thome being replaced, move Swish to 1B). Thoughts? I don't think either Konerko or Dye will be gone. I think the plan is for Thome, Konerko, and Dye to remain in the lineup, and then one by one the Sox will leave the Sox organization...Thome I imagine will retire either this offseason or next (I could also see him sticking around the league and being a platoon player for a team like Oakland or Cleveland, but retiring seems most logical to me), Dye will be let go to free agency after 2010, and Konerko could quite possibly be gone after 2010 too, although I could see them attempting to resign him to a 2-3 year deal at the end of this contract, depending upon what type of shape his body's in and how he's been playing.