caulfield12

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/bryce-harper-nationals-make-first-world-series-without-him-161136360.html

Let’s go by the definition of 2+ fWAR players. We have six. You can basically flip Nova and Abreu for the purposes of argument. Twins have 12 and Pérez at 1.9. Astros have 11. Yankees have 11. Cubs have 11. Dodgers have 10. Then you have to consider how many have the potential to be true studs...and that’s Moncada, Giolito and Robert. Jimenez will always be suppressed by defense/position and we have no earthly idea what Kopech and Cease are going to do. If the White Sox aren’t willing to spend $150-175 million, then a Cole contract blowing up in their faces is devastating. Just like the Kopech injury was to the 2018/19 seasons to those forecasting an earlier push to competitiveness/respectability.

Playoff contender, sure. Baseball just doesn’t allow one or two superstars to get you there...over a deeper team with 10-15 high quality players. And injuries...

At least we’re now in the Aroldis Chapman Sweepstakes, yay! I guess...? Reaction to that idea? Unfortunately blew it by wasting money on Herrera. Would definitely trade or cut lose Colome if I knew that money was going to Chapman instead of being banked.

Is Aroldis Chapman’s signing bonus actually getting paid over five years? Or just allocated that way for payroll math but not in actuality? There’s a non slight difference between 2/$30 beating his two remaining player options and 2/$34.4 million. According to NY Post https://nypost.com/2019/08/21/aroldis-chapmans-yankees-opt-out-decision-will-be-complicated/ “Chapman has two years at $30 million left. And while dubious about (Kenley) Jansen, I believe Chapman would top how much remains on his deal. Four years at $60 million feels possible, perhaps more. A club with money to spend and a desire to break from losing shackles, such as the White Sox, stands out. But the way Kimbrel was treated in the marketplace has to provide pause for Chapman. And the fall of Wade Davis — the only reliever to make more on average per year than Chapman and Jansen — is going to further unnerve clubs thinking about spending big on even star relievers. Davis, in the second season of a three-year, $52 million pact, has become close to unusable by the Rockies.”

Charlie Brown?

They're going to have to get creative with pitching, for sure....Gregorious and Gardner are free agents, and/or trying to dump Stanton's contract on someone for 30-50 cents on the dollar. Not to mention Sabathia, Betances and Encarnacion all off the books, as well. So they're losing $60 million, more or less. That's assuming Aroldis Chapman doesn't opt out!!!! Can Chapman get more than two years and $34.4 million? MAYBE???? PROBABLY!!! And he doesn't want to go to a West Coast team, so going FA now opens up possibilities for him if he wants to leave the Yankees now (for whatever reason). If so, the Yankees will down almost $80 million in payroll from 2019.

Common sense/logic. Those two franchises really have NO CHOICE, especially with the end of Clayton Kershaw Era nearing, but certainly not his contract. The Yankees, with the Red Sox spinning their wheels for at least one more year and Rays not having the financial resources to compete for the biggest prize...their fans are going to expect even more for the highest priced ticket in baseball.

Assuming one of them signs Cole (Dodgers/Yankees or another West Coast team)...opening up the possibility that one or both that miss out on Cole is going have to go "all in" on Rendon (despite the existing presence of Turner/Andujar)... And the pressure the Nats are going to have to keep Strasburg and/or Rendon from BOTH leaving, the free agent market is definitely going to feature more suitors and 1) overall, MORE teams in 2020 with deep pockets, or 2) teams like the Cardinals/Brewers/Rays/Indians/A's/Twins without deep pockets but desperate to get an impact player over a shorter time commitment, such as Betts/JDM and 3) teams like the Angels, Rangers, Rockies, DBacks, Mets, Padres and White Sox with the ability to spend and/or desperation to make another "leap forward" in the standings in 2020. Then there are the Cubs and Red Sox...as well as the Giants, who are kind of stuck "in between" at the moment. Fascinating situation...but not exactly comforting, if you're a White Sox fan.

market is threatening to create this "challenging market condition" that didn't exist last year in the Harpchado Sweepstakes... Discuss/evaluate.

George Costanza Effect. Do the opposite of whatever their first impulse is...that choice will then naturally work out beautifully. The paragon of infinite baseball wisdom, Adam Eaton, executed the philosophy to perfection this week.

Ever again...and 2021-24 are two quite distinct issues. If we’re not in the Top 10-15 range at some point...kiss sustained success goodbye. Kiss Moncada, Giolito and Robert extensions goodbye as well. They’re probably thinking they won in 2005 at only $65+ million...why not again? All they’re missing is those 6-8 perfect additions, just like 2004-05, the Red Sox in 2013 or Twins last year.

There's a problem, "best stuff" would go to Wheeler hands down, just like going after Cole a couple of years ago when he was on the Pirates. As we all know, that doesn't necessarily translate into results, so we're left assessing potential/ability vs actual performance levels and advanced stats. Then we're having to project those NL numbers into the AL Central. Nobody knows. We're not paid to. Is Wheeler for 4/5 years and $75-100 million a better choice than Odorizzi at less years and money? Well, we also have to consider what type of pitcher/s work best with a Don Cooper old school style of coaching...and which would prefer to be in the modern world of Driveline/AI-assisted mechanical analysis?

In Bangladesh or Indonesia? Vietnam? That said, what is a big show in your idea, bmags? XXX commitment in additional money for 2020....and XXX commitment in overall dollars from 2020-202_?

I do believe they really could use a veteran leader, and Bumgarner's about as respected as anyone in the game...at least in certain circles. Does anyone know anything about Wheeler's character/personality? Is he willing to be a mentor to younger pitchers...like a Mark Buehrle? Or is he more like AJ, looking at every younger player as someone who might take his job away someday? Having a Keuchel or Bumgarner has a set of intrinsic rewards, above and beyond their actual on-field performance level. And it's not like they are in the last years of their career, like Jimmy Rollins or Vizquel when we brought them in.

Sure, which requires being able to target successfully Tier B/C players to supplement a young core. Whether Cron or Odorrizi (they were one year early on Lynn, but had right assessment...the late start killed him in 2018), Cruz or Schoop, Pineda (before PED's), Martin Perez or Marwin Gonzalez, they ended up with one solid contributor after another. We've gotten ONE over the last 3 cycles, McCann.

Think Ozuna switched agents recently.

Sure...and Myers. We shall see. Maybe JR will finally wake up from his stupor if that happens. Or we’ll have a parade of posts trumpeting an aversion to “irrational exuberance” on the FA market. That spreading out money over a whole host of players like 2004-05 is the way to go every time, and that the presence of Harper, Machado, Rendon, Strasburg and Cole alone would mean nothing to the White Sox, other than a looming contract albatross.

We’re finally getting Ichiro, yay! And Goodbye Gerrit Cole, we hardly knew ye.

It's also yet ANOTHER indication that we should be hiring someone from that organization for double their current salary and sticking them behind Hahn and ahead of Haber as the heir-apparent.

Adolfo STILL has the most potential based on ability...but the likelihood right now has to be pretty small of hitting that ceiling. Walker and Rutherford feel more like 4th/5th outfielder types, but maybe the juiced ball makes 20-25ish home run hitters (like a Benintendi, for a comp in terms of power) more tolerable.

Stockholm Syndrome.

Tanaka really seems to dial it up in the post-season...

Sure, but you have to sign Grandal first. Sure, if he can actually stay healthy...he’s had as many really great/good seasons as Avi Garcia.

The White Sox have drafted more collegiate relievers and starters with the idea they could contribute in the bullpen that practically any team in baseball the last 4 seasons, particularly before this draft. I read over and over again how we were going to corner the market or make this our niche, emulating the Royals’ 2014-16 pens. That has absolutely zero to do with whether they were picked in Rounds 1-5, because most projected to be relievers typically are not unless you want to be fired as a scouting director. We can go through every Sox closer back to Roberto Hernandez. Other than Koch (disaster) and paying Robertson like he was a Top 5, elite closer when he was pretty clearly in the second tier or group 6-10...we NEVER EvER pay for elite closers. (You can even argue we didn’t buy Koch, we made a bad trade for him.) Colome is not one. Herrera was close in 2014-2016, but obviously has lost it...partially physically, mostly mentally. Smith is not one, he’s just the best currently available on the market. They are NOT going to gave three relievers on the roster making $10 million or more. I’ll believe they can sign Cole before I believe that one. After all, they signed Albert Belle once upon a time!!! Maybe the fact of the matter is that the White Sox themselves are stuck in circular logic in terms of their fear of signing anyone to a $100+ million, long term contract. They’re actually more likely to be wary now, after the Nats finally succeeded without Harper and Padres went nowhere fast...