caulfield12

JR: Best owner in professional sports, period! Seven titles don’t lie.

Not to mention Turner and Chris Taylor... seems they pull a new guy out of the hat every season.

Because he’s the closest thing to Dustin Pedroia out there. Devers, Bogaerts, Madrigal, Betts and Benintendi...that’s a solid enough core if they jettison JDM’s salary and inject it back into the pitching staff. They can always plug someone like Chavis, Smoak, Adams, etc., into the DH spot.

They need a 2B in the Pedroia mode, and Madrigal is the perfect match there. It would be something like Madrigal, Lopez and Walker. Thats too much capital to run the risk of losing him at the end of the year when they’re probably not competing without a DH, two more solid starting pitchers and some major additions in the pen (thanks for nothing, Herrera.)

Ironic we ended up behind Padres and Angels again...

Why are we trading Vaughn when we haven't been able to come up with a single acceptable 1B/DH other than Abreu in the last five years??? Are we REALLY betting on Collins, Sheets or Adolfo at that spot?

I can't tell you how many arguments I've read in the last 4-5 years here at SoxTalk that that deal wasn't bad at all for the White Sox...that it was a "coup" for Rick Hahn, even (except against the Royals).

The only thing that would have been better would be Gordon Beckham doing that with 2 outs. Alas. Still would be shocked if Verlander doesn't end up with his 21st victory of the season against LAA, down just 1-0.

Cue Balta's Omar Narvaez will end up creating more value for the Mariners (three more years on his contract) than Alex Colome does for the Chicago White Sox argument of the last 9 months. Padres, surprisingly, in Garrett Richard's third comeback start, beating Robbie Ray and the D-Backs in the desert.

Tank loss, supreme!!! Otoh, Colome's second half leaves a lot to be desired, and there's not a plethora of solid closers on the FA market...and JR never likes to overspend on relief pitchers, not after Dotel, Linebrink and Robertson.

Drama/intrigue!!!

As soon as they decided to shut down Tatis and Paddack, the writing was on the wall. They've been playing a couple of their marginal/fringe minor leaguers a lot down the stretch as well. But yeah, for most of the first half, they were anywhere from 6 games over .500 to 3-5 games under, going back and forth like a yo-yo but at least competitive/respectable.

It’s the Sox. No need to even answer that question, or dream about Grandal.

Collins up to .198 now.

Padres ahead of the Sox now. 1/2 game “ahead” of LAA starting GM 2, Cincy 1 1/2 ahead and delayed at Pitt. Angels facing Verlander.

Let’s talk after we see who those other two bats are after Robert/Madrigal...

Relying on Engel as a starter in a competitive season is pretty nutty. Yolmer put up much more impressive fWAR numbers yet proved over and over again an everyday role was too much...at least on a good team. Same with Leury.

Without Grandal, they’re really depending on Collins to pick up for a McCann regression to previous form...not to mention the defensive consequences on a (still) young and enigmatic pitching staff. That said, the Dodgers had their own issues with Grandal, and not sure how much damage Collins can do defensively versus the potential benefits of a changing in philosophy from the pitching coach (which won’t conceivably occur until mid-season 2020 or later.)

He’s been hurt or iffy quite a bit this year...that explains some of the endurance/stamina issues.

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/jose-abreus-return-white-sox-233549151.html Moncada, Renteria, Anderson foreshadow Abreu staying with the White Sox for the remainder of his career Can Rick Renteria imagine the White Sox shifting into contention mode without Jose Abreu? "No," he said in a rapid-fire response before the start of the team's final homestand. "He's been here throughout the early stages of this rebuild," Hahn said during an MLB Network interview in May, "and it's certainly very likely that he'll be here for the more enjoyable stages that lie ahead of us." Rick Renteria Anderson added his voice to the group advocating for Abreu's return Tuesday. "He means a lot," Anderson said. "He's leading the way. He was here when we were struggling, so I want him to be here when we're winning. I think it's only right."

You're assuming that Ricketts allows Epstein to make that decision.

I don't think David Ross will inspire much excitement compared to Girardi's homecoming. Baseball is an entertainment business, and Ross was a great story, but they need a manager with more gravitas to turn this thing around.

PTI Take?

Just as there’s probably a stat that our combined 2B, RF, CF and DH production this year is worst in the majors. Luckily, there are obvious solutions to two of those problems, whether Collins will/can make it, we still have no clear idea.

Hasn’t this largely been the case (already) since the Heyward and Alex Gordon contracts?