caulfield12

Fwiw, Chris Rongey is long gone. Back in StL, not even sure he’s still in sports broadcasting at the moment. Connor McKnight kinds of grows on you with his earnest enthusiasm, he’s no Dave Wills, but decent at least. He at respects callers, for the most part.

Only if I teach 30+ hours per week and miss less than 2 days of school in Year 5, at age 55. Ironically, teachers are typically forced into retirement at age 60 in China...but I think there’s an exception if you stay with your current employer (as opposed to signing with a new school at 60+).

This, from late 2016...the obvious risk or concern here is automated/computerized ball and strike calls being instituted in the the next four seasons https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/page/playoffs16_appreciatinggrandal/putting-value-los-angeles-dodgers-catcher-yasmani-grandal-proper-frame “Or, arguably, catchers who frame, which is how Grandal got brought into this MVP conversation in the first place. Grandal is a fine hitter, though that fact is obscured by his home ballpark and a low batting average. Only two catchers -- Jonathan Lucroy and Wilson Ramos -- were better hitters in 2016, by wOBA, and only Lucroy, Buster Posey and Russell Martin top him since 2014. But he doesn't hit the way MVPs hit. His arm and blocking aren't notable, and he has twice led the league in passed balls. But he's almost certainly an extraordinary pitch-framer, finishing second in the majors in Baseball Prospectus' framing runs (with 27 saved) this season after leading the majors (with 26) in 2015. That made him the seventh-most valuable player in the NL this year, according to BP's wins above replacement player -- just as PECOTA had projected. The existence of pitch-framing is not controversial; teams have taught it for decades, and Grandal traces his own education in the skill back to a college coach. He takes pride in his ability to steal strikes, and his teammates and bosses praise him for it. There is, then, nobody disputing that collecting strikes is real, and very little dispute that Grandal is good at it. But there's also no disputing that making strong relay throws is a real skill for a middle infielder, or that a good pickoff throw is a real skill for a pitcher. Were I to argue that Elvis Andrus' relay throws are worth 30 runs and make him an MVP candidate, I would find disputers. So Grandal's potential MVP candidacy would come down to one question: Is the number -- the 27 runs -- credible?”

Where’s Balta? It’s 3:37 a.m. China time, c’mon! The bizarre thing is just signing a five year contract to stay teaching here...precisely twelve hours ago, on Thursday. Unfortunately, only five zeroes!

Well, Anderson is “only” under control through 2024...but he’s certainly not a priority in comparison to Giolito, Moncada and possibly Robert. Those last two will be the toughest to extend. Giolito repeats his 2019 and he suddenly puts himself in elite territory...so now is the ideal time to strike if they’re 100% confident in his “repeatability.“ That would obviously carry a not insignificant amount of risk, as he’s already past the first three years. Of course, no extension and his arbitration numbers rise exponentially each season as well.

Hawk, that you? We’ve been missing those last weeks of 1967 stories for awhile now.

Good to hear. Now if they successfully convert on one of their top pitching targets, the high-decibel/unbridled optimism level will legitimately be reinstituted for the first time since the Moncada and Kopech debuts.

When Realmuto and Sal Perez are your best options after 2020...this type of go for broke move was necessitated because waiting and hoping on Realmuto...who at least 50/50 resigns with Philly, that’s just as much of a risk because who’s their starting catcher then if that falls through? In the end, both Narvaez and Collins weren’t good enough...nor was wishing, hoping and praying on a McCann repeat. If this goes south, or those three players all go on to successful careers outside of Chicago and Grandal has a swift fall-off...that will be the time to have that conversation. This is one of those moves that also puts the nail in the coffin for Hahn OR makes him GM of the Year. We’ll see...but it’s the first real risk they have taken since signing LUIS Robert and trading the Big 3 to kick off the rebuild.

They’re going to start him off low in the order and tamp down the pressure/expectations as much as possible. Down the line he gets more comfortable and confident at the big league level, sure. At the very least, he’s putting up numbers similar to Mike Cameron early in his career. As long as the K rate is less than 35-40%, he’ll be fine. He just can’t be Brian Anderson hitting in the 625-675 OPS range, at least not longer term.

The problem is 2022-23 is clearly the heart of the competitive window, as currently constructed. With Grandal’s age, competing this year at least now has to be looked at realistically...predicated on the rest of their moves and all the young players making steady progress and not busting...at least the very top guys. Ryu, Bumgarner, Keuchel, Hamels....they collectively as a group fall into that same category of win now rather than win later acquisitions due to age, mileage and/or injury concerns.

Love that they went out so quickly and set a precedent...even with an extra year and maybe $10-15 million higher than most were ideally hoping for, overpaying by a bit was always going to be a necessity to not let these negotiations linger on and on and then risk losing said player to a surprise last-minute bidder.

Finally the White Sox are back on the radar again. Here’s hoping he has a MUCH more playoff-filled and statistically significant career than our last big name move 8 years ago...no more NY Times articles, except for breaking the offseason slide. Don't know if they can also get Wheeler, who was #1 on my want list...but the leverage this provides shows it’s not just a pipe dream. Of course, it also puts a real spotlight on Collins, and, specifically, his hitting ability...the risk of him getting the most DH at-bats OR being completely out of the picture and shipped away in a trade. Hostetler being right on the the money in that draft would have saved a big chuck of money, but it does show they weren’t banking on McCann repeating his first half magic trick. And it is difficult to imagine they’re not considering Puig due to his name recognition and the Cuban Connection. Wheeler, Grandal, Puig and a reliever is about the most I could have optimistically hoped for. Will be extra curious now how it plays out. But at least they’re finally serious again about actually winning and not just fielding a team.

There's still a disconnect between "out with the old, in with the new" and keeping Renteria as the big league manager. If they (FO) really are (still) strong believers in Cooper and Renteria, how the heck are they going to align that throughout their system because those two guys are so idiosyncratic in their ways. I guess I get the "Wolverine Synergy" between Hahn and Getzie, but where does it lead to as an organizational philosophy?

But isn’t bunting simply a reflection also (as well as a personal preference)...of the fact that such strategy is exactly what they would be expected to do under Renteria? Maybe he has been led to believe the Sox will stick it out with Renteria and wanted a faster path to the big leagues as a bench coach or third base coach elsewhere.

We’ve been speculating $100-115 million from the original 4/$80 “reasonable” price. Still not sure $100 gets it done unless he really has his heart set on Chicago and doesn’t want to wait it out. He’s not ever going to be a second or third tier option this offseason, so not sure how waiting until January/February has more negatives than positives attached to it. From a Hahn standpoint, getting one big name in the fold early is huge in terms of setting up the other moves. Devil’s Advocate of course is that Melky, Robertson and LaRoche didn’t exactly work out when we “won” that particular offseason.

Haha...that’s like when Andy Gonzalez and Jerry Owens were ranked similarly, and a catcher whose name now escapes me.

When’s the last time we sold “really high” on a Top 5 team prospect that later fizzled? Jeremy Reed? Daniel Hudson for EJax doesn’t really fit here. I guess Santiago for Eaton...although he technically was no longer a prospect by then. A. Reed for Davidson, although also no longer a prospect.

Would the White Sox go five on Wheeler, let alone six?

Nobody will give up that much for McCann unless he repeats his first half...in which case, we’d undoubtedly be extending him for 2-3 years into the heart of the rebuild.

You do realize Tauchman is already 28...? I guess Hahn would like the local boy comes home angle...Fremd, Palatine, Bradley, but generally trading high upside, cost-controlled starting pitchers for more expensive veteran 4/5 starters doesn’t work out well. If we were making 3 big moves this offseason to go with it, maybe. By the time we actually need Happ, he’ll be yet one more year removed from his prime. And Tauchman was a low 700s OPS guy in 2015-16...it wasn’t until Albuquerque, a hitter’s paradise not unlike Charlotte, that he really took off. He might be a late bloomer, but he could just as easily be in a one year flash in the pan.

Well, we're always good to take another team's expendable veteran off their hands (with a salary subsidy) and send back prospects to save on payroll...

What I meant was if he ACTUALLY ends up with that $17.8 million one year salary, rather than the reported 2/$25-30 or 3/$40-45 million extensions that were being negotiated (and probably still are).

Does that $40 million include Abreu's raise if he ends up ultimately accepting the QO?

Didn’t the Call/Fisher draft represent their first attempt to go high OBP, more refined collegiate hitters...?

Seems the Cubs are looking at Akiyama for CF...