caulfield12

That's ALWAYS the reality for pretty much any TOP 3 or TOP 5 June amateur draft pick for the following five seasons...until they become more suspect than prospect.

Yet he used to be able to play CF pretty regularly...I think Vaughn's highest throwing velocity this season was around the mid 80's.

Do you have to be under age 30 or 35 to be defined as a "woke" person, just curious?

That said, Rosario has played out of his mind defensively this post-season, and never noted for his defense. Is Soler actually worse than Sheets or Vaughn or Burger out in RF??? That would be hard to believe. And how does he stack up against Eloy?...because we already know Jimenez doesn't have the arm or the ability to actually hit cut-off men, either.

Plus, no Verlander and Greinke 2-3 years since he was still really effective...

Just waiting for the panic to set in when we lose Conforto....what are options B/C/D for RF, actually?

That said, you need to have a great/abundant farm system to replace guys like Soroka and Ynoa and Folty....an ace in Fried....and a REALLY strong and deep bullpen. Riley became an MVP-caliber player this year, they already have Freeman....and Albies/Swanson both are very dynamic MI talents to go along with Acuna.

Brewers at that number are pretty shocking....especially with those top three starters in their rotation. Would have to look more closely at FO/GB and K numbers to see what value those numbers provide...as well as infield defense (Adames, Arcia, Urias, etc.)

And yet they're probably letting Gray go with nothing in return and/or attempting to trade Marquez???

Obvious (initial) overreaction to a potential World Series-winning homer (and not going as far as arguing for Rosario/Joc/Duvall, haha)... Jorge Soler to RF, screw the issues with hitting against RHP, just bomb other teams out of the park at home like the 2000 and 2006 first half offenses. You can certainly dominate the AL Central again for at least one more season (barring catastrophic injuries again), then make another go at fixing weaknesses at the trade deadline (which is right back to classic KW philosophy, right?) Will cost no more than $10-12 million for Soler, compared to Conforto's bigger ask per year and total numbers of years. Plus, you'd have to think Soler would be motivated to play alongside countrymen, so you could get a slight discount if he's already won a WS with the Braves...plus, there's the whole ex-Cub/vanquished prospect angle to consider. Won't go as far as Schwarber at DH (ex-Cubs theme again) and then adding the LHH/RHP-killing 2B with average to above average defense (Escobar, Segura, Didi, converting Andrelton Simmons if you want to shore up the defense and hope for an offensive rebound). Or perhaps they can afford to give Romy a shot for 2-3 months and see what he can do...that's the other option, with Leury as the fallback. I am thinking that they really need to start going 100% all-in over the next two years, because the future is never guaranteed...and we already "wasted" this year of Lynn, Grandal, Abreu, Hendriks, Rodon and Kimbrel with nothing much to show for it. And then they really need to decide between Eloy and Vaughn (both are at less than peak value, so holding on makes sense, but it's hard to see how they can keep both with Abreu part of the picture for the foreseeable future), Sheets, Burger and Collins (part of DH platoon if you don't sign someone, PERHAPS). Just can't see waiting another two years until Cespedes (25%???) and/or Colas (50/50???) are big-league ready. (Yes, there are a LOT of names here, and obviously many angles to consider...and certainly no easy decisions to make at this critical/crucial point in the window.)

Job creators, those owners and conglomerates are...simple supply side economics. Maybe the White Sox should just forget about analytics and pleasing/appeasing fans in general and just plug all their surplus revenues into farmland, fine art and space exploration SPAC's...just like average baseball fans (age 57) are doing right now.

He will get at least $10-12 if not $13 million, with Rodon and Kimbrel, you might already be blocked from a big move in FA so that means you probably have to trade Vaughn, Sheets and/or Burger to fill RF and 2B. Then you are starting to look at definite financial issues as the team keeps getting older and more expensive in 2024 and beyond. Trading Giolito just creates another hole in the rotation so that’s not a great choice, either. It’s a lot easier to just go cheaper at DH and platoon there if you have to than it is to find a legit everyday RF.

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/trevor-story/12564/splits?season=0&position=SS&split=1.2 Can you/we afford to pay $20+ million for a .241 BA and wRC+ of under 100 (98 to be exact) over his career away from home? That’s a much bigger risk than Kimbrel because it will be a 4-5 year contract. You’re also wasting his defense playing him at second…but paying him like a premium SS.

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/trevor-story/12564/splits?season=0&position=SS&split=1.2 Can you/we afford to pay $20+ million for a .241 BA and wRC+ of under 100 (98 to be exact) over his career away from home? That’s a much bigger risk than Kimbrel because it will be a 4-5 year contract. You’re also wasting his defense playing him at second…but paying him like a premium SS.

Haven’t ticket prices for the NFL and NBA and even the NHL increased more dramatically over the last 20-30 years than for MLB? The simple solution has always been going to more minor league games for the more casual fans who just want a fun night out occasionally with their family. Or we could blame both political parties for “easy money” policies, tax cuts, Covid relief programs, etc., injecting too much money to prop up the markets. Between grocery bills, energy bills, home prices, used cars, gasoline, health care, education…everything has been skyrocketing. Or just look at the markets for crypto, hedge funds for institutional clients, NFTs, SPAC’s. It used to feel good to have a couple of million. Now, you’re nothing without $5 if not being a deca millionaire in many parts of the US, especially the East and West coasts. Then there’s the 80% of the country that will never come close to accumulating even $1 million, let alone $500-750,000…in a lifetime of scrimping and saving.

Sox ticket prices from 2012 to 2019 weren’t cheaper, adjusted for inflation…than 2006-2011?

Borrowed this from an overlooked area of SoxTalk as its germane to the discussion. Don: How do you think fans (who feel this way, at least) rationalize siding with owners over players while also constantly saying that Manfred is ruining the game? As if Manfred is anything more than a figurehead and mouthpiece for those owners? 1:19 Kevin Goldstein: Um . . . without getting too political, on a cultural level this country has turned bosses/business owners into heroes and workers into less than that. Joe: Is it difficult to square any potential political leanings one might have about workers (say, they should be paid for their labor) and being in a front office? It seems sort of impossible not to treat players like commodities to some extent. 1:33 Kevin Goldstein: Yes, it can be difficult, and I personally believe players should never be referred to in commodified language, like ‘assets’ for example

Well, for the Cubs, the only thing that would make sense (for a rebuilding team) would be flipping Glasnow after he returns...which, if you are right, means they valued Madrigal + Heuer for 10 years at more than they could get back for Tyler Glasnow potentially returning to form. From the Cubs' standpoint, you would be gambling that he could show something for the Cubs those last two months of 22 but more likely spring training and into the first half the following season, 2023. And then there's the pretty significant price tag for the Rays, which will total $16 million keeping Glasnow (including $6 million for rehabbing in 2022). So in essence, around $10 million for one season (2023) in which his (Glasnow's) innings likely will be limited (which would also depress his trade value, knowing how carefully he would need to be managed for a contending team that acquired him from the Cubs right before his FA/walk year begins). The usual recovery time for the surgery is 12-14 months, fwiw. So that Glasnow situation has to be looked at carefully only after considering all the mitigating factors. And we also don't know if the Rays were planning to roster Kimbrel for 2022 or flip him just like the White Sox are seemingly going to do, but having performed closer to his first half 2021 numbers, obviously. There's a massive difference between $5.3 million (two months pro-rated) and $16 million allocated over a full season for a franchise like the Rays. They'll undoubtedly be better off at least trying to make a run next year or the following with Glasnow, because a return to form would make him one of the most valuable assets in the game, and one the Rays couldn't afford to buy as a FA or with prospect capital.

Kyle Seager to 2B is the exact wrong brother, but it would be a typical 2000's to 2016 White Sox mid-season declining "big name" veteran desperation move...not unlike the supposed "big game" pitcher in Shields, 3-5 years after he had already passed his prime with the Royals. Haniger's still the name with the Mariners, but why spend whatever trade surplus you have when you can simply BUY Conforto...? Doesn't make much sense, unless they're REALLY being budget conscious.

Yep, this has to be more of a concern than second base. Plus replacing Kimbrel, Tepera and Kopech. Hopefully we get a miracle rebound from Cordero but nothing you can count on.

The problem is neither of those two guys are likely to hit any type of MLB comfort zone or stride until 2024 or later. It's all basically projection at this point. Just as much if not more so with Cespedes and Colas. Romy maybe you give him a shot and adjust at the deadline if you fixed RF at least...with Leury as obvious backup or fallback option to muddle through.

Merrifield would require trade capital and is in a decline...divisional rival, one of Royals' fans 2-3 favorite players, not elite at second, limited control, just don't see it happening. Story is a big name but an objective analysis of numbers say no.. especially with a position change to top it off.

Most are still going to side with Goldman Sachs entry level account managers compared to the CEO and CFO, especially when you consider average earnings and lack of pensions/benefits over a lifetime for a non first round draft pick. Heck, simply fortunate to get housing and non McDonald's/Taco Bell. Then you have to consider the players are getting less and less of the pie every year...compounded by that comparison of 30+ veteran players today in FA being quite similar to 50-55+ middle managers in the real world...at least in the capitalist pecking order. You certainly can't completely separate being a baseball fan from the business of baseball...and any time the word "union" enters a conversation, undoubtedly it gets sensitive, regardless of whether you are a teacher or not. It's also much easier to imagine making it as a player in any sport than being a multi-billionaire.

Hahn should be fired on the spot for giving that type of deal to Story. Arenado he is not, and there was an appreciable/predictable fall off from Coors for him. Seager is the best fit for our line up but not happening in JR's lifetime.

I still have no idea what the point of sending cash with Kimbrel to get a Kiermaier accomplishes...an ego-free GM (at least one completely desensitized to how Madrigal and Heuer will perform on the Northside) would admit we just got that one wrong and start over with a clean slate and exercise the buyout. It's like cutting off the nose to spite the face...or not walking away from casino because you just have to get back to $0 psychologically after taking heavy losses.