caulfield12

Why did they let Belle walk? Why did they put a diminished skills clause in Thomas' contract? Why did they let Ventura leave as a player? Why did Dye/Pierzynski take less money in 05 to come to the Sox? Well, because Dye was coming off a broken leg and AJ was run out of SF because he completely alienated himself in less than one season from nearly every pitcher and member of the coaching staff. Why did they trade Lee before the 05 season? They traded Lee and let Valentin and Ordonez go in order to fit in all of hte 2004-2005 additions that would lead to a World Series winner in 2005, specifically to change the top of the line-up with Pods/Iguchi and fit Freddy Garcia/Jose Contreras onto the expense report. Why did they go to Paulie and AJ when trying to get Dunn and have them delay their salary to sign him? Why do they seem to trade for guys with 2-3yrs left on their contract rather than singing a guy for 5-6yrs in FA? Why did you just dump money with the Nate Jones trade? What happened in this past offseason? Jon Jay was your biggest FA acquisition Well, no, Herrera was... Let that sink in. We met with Bryce at the beginning of FA, had the United Center photo leaked and never another word. The amount of Jersey sales/ticket sales would of paid at least half his salary this is not true because that amount is shared/split with the rest of teams and wouldn't come close to $15 million...ticket sales included, we're talking $5-7.5 million if it's anything like what Philly experienced and that is not counting the endorsement money from being on the cover of gamesthat in and of itself has no impact on the Phillies. And the Machado thing... He literally said he wanted $300M and the Sox literally had no competition all offseason until it was leaked their offer was under $200M. And what did he do? Signed for $300M like her he said. They saw early on backlash from the fans, and then they had better play from Moncada/Giolitto and the rest of the team. And people got excited and went to games. And they are trying to sell us the same garbage as last offseason. And people are not gonna buy it. And we are gonna go into next season with the same results, but this time Robert and Madrigal are going to be on the team doing what Eloy/Moncada/Giolito did this year. And it is just a big circle jerk. This teams problem is pitching, and they REFUSE to pay more than 3yrs to a pitcher John Danks and Mark Buehrle had 5 and 4 year contracts, but yeah....6+ years would be shocking, and they generally haven't take huge risks with free agent pitchers coming from outside the organization So you are not being "objective" by thinking this is gonna change. People DO NOT CHANGEif you look at the Sox payrolls from 2006-2013, you'll discover that they were in the Top Ten, even Top 5 a couple of times, but probably averaged 8-10th in baseball (not saying that all that money was spent WISELY), they just don't. Jerry cares about money. There is a reason FAs do not sign with the Bulls, and it is not because they have to live up to MJ. It is because he is cheap and puts dumb clauses in contracts. Why? Because Jerry is cheap! Mostly, they've been terrible at talent identification and development...and equally poor with major league scouting (at least ever since they acquired Eaton, Floyd, Danks and Quentin before 2008) Luis Robert, Moncada, Giolito, Anderson, Jimenez, Vaughn and Madrigal are who they're going "all in" with...if they're wrong, they won't have jobs 2-3 years from now.

This is why the Lester move was so important to the Cubs...it proved to fans they were of the mindset to go out and compete with the best for talent. Obviously, Epstein already had an “in” there, but we all have the money, theoretically.

Oh-uh...no energy to counter this in a positive way but there are about 5-6 inaccuracies or embellishments here. Someone else can take you to task.

It’s really quite simple...just like in 2004-05. Non-headlining additions, but still quality players across those board who coalesced into something great for 1 1/2 seasons (parallel with the Brewers and Twins again.) The problem at this point is most aren’t confident in Hahn pulling it off. Everything you described is perfectly, 100%, logical and reasonable and rational. Affordable, doesn’t blow the budget into the stratosphere, risk-mitigation (except those pitchers), heck...we were spending well over $120-125 million over a decade ago when we routinely ran Top Ten payrolls out there after the World Series. Just not sure it’s enough to inspire...once upon a time, it was going to be at least a five year window and I can squint back and recall a couple of weeks where Balta had us dominating/eviscerating the entire AL as a dynastic type of team (which is even quickly slipping away through the fingers of the Cubs with almost twice that level of payroll of what we’re aspiring to run out there.) PS: I had a nightmare your Scooter Gennett turns into Derek Dietrich and we’re still adding 1-1.5 fWAR pieces to supplement the core for the next decade. PTSD.

Bumgarner (mentioned in possibilities) hasn’t been a “great” pitcher since 2016. And you’re exactly right about Grandal, except both these guys will be entering their age 31 seasons where a drop off might reasonably be expected, especially from a catcher. Dunn, for example, was also the same age. It now feels like deja vu, like we’re right back to 2014-2016 except with a younger/deeper and theoretically more promising core of six players...once again adding the likes of “five veterans who will not be named.” The weird thing to me is why nobody was willing to give Grandal a long-term deal if you examine his 4-5 year track record more closely...it couldn’t have simply been the questions around the industry coming out of the playoffs last year? Hard to understand. Finally, does anyone have faith at this point in Don Cooper working with another “project” in Wheeler (let’s compare him to Eeovaldi for argument’s sake) or Wood coming off a major injury? I guess we just have to take those risks and hope it turns out ultimately more like 2004-05 or 2008 than the last decade of free agent moves with the Sox.

Basically, then, we are the AL version of the Brewers (or a copy of this recent Twins’ offseason)...aiming for a $120-125 million payroll while not having to worry about the Cubs and Cardinals outspending us. Of course, we’re obviously missing two key elements in Yelich and Josh Hader to carry the team, so it’s up to Moncada or Robert to be that superstar, right? The group of “reasonable” players you listed as bringing in are a pretty fair approximation of Cain, Moustakas, Shaw, Schoop, etc. Recently, their biggest add in an “all-in” year was Jordan Lyles. 1) Can you sustain sufficient offseason motivation writing this same basic post over and over again? 2) Will reasonable but clearly second and third tier moves be enough to reinvigorate the fanbase? 3) Gennett has played 9 games in LF, one game in RF...in his entire major and minor league career. Does he even have enough arm to play out there, or the desire to do so when he will be in demand by a number of playoff-contending teams at age 29? Also, should the White Sox overpay by 10-15% to get him to do something he might not even be comfortable doing?

Greg, Burger is a ways from even playing after almost two full seasons off...just making a major league roster someday would be cause for celebration and even a Disney movie deal.

As good as the Astros are, it’s kind of crazy how wrong they were on Appel, Aiken (that worked out in the end)...Whitley is really struggling now, then there were all those pitchers we targeted 3-4 years ago that nothing became of them. Otoh, they seemingly worked miracles with Morton, Verlander, Cole...scouting proven talent is their forte, and they’ve assiduously assessed/improved a lot about following a regimented process in terms of what players to give up on after the JD Martinez fiasco.

Dodgers, most extensive scouting network, Astros best with analytics...

There are at least 7-8 organizations that fit such a description...

Optimistically, Collins or Sheets can/could comprise 2/3rds of the DH platoon and solve part of the right handedness dominance issue...and, now that Castellanos and Puig won’t carry draft pick compensation, they both move up the charts. Not sure why we didn’t go after Aaron Sanchez or Corey Dickerson...just watch, Sanchez will end up pitching like a monster for the Astros, who really distanced themselves from the rest of the American League at the deadline. We’re so irrelevant (at this precise moment) we don’t even qualify as a trade deadline “loser” these days.

http://thebaseballcube.com/players/profile.asp?ID=128329 What are the odds, another Orlando signed him...Orlando Santana. Wonder if he’s related to Rafael? Looks like he is Cuban... Orlando Santana later moved to Brazil, where he was very active on the baseball scene. He helped entice Anderson Gomes to play baseball for a youth team he was running, he managed the Brazilian national team in the 2008 Americas Baseball Cup and he scouted Brazil for the Chicago White Sox, signing Paulo Orlandoand Andre Rienzo, two of the earliest Brazilians to reach AAA. Former scouts Jorge L. Oquendo Rivera and Victor Mateo also face mail fraud charges...so this guy wasn’t charged.

9 homers in 41+ innings now for Diaz...

Machado's perfectly capable of playing SS. Then you would have Moncada at 3B, Machado at SS, Madrigal at 2B and Tim Anderson and Luis Robert in the OF...a MUCH better team with a true middle of the order hitter at the peak of his career instead of Jose Abreu.

Well, who exactly is to blame for that? Anderson is at 7.9bWAR and 5.8fWAR for his 4 years with the White Sox. I guess you can divide by 3.66 if you want. Still not going to get to 2.

Well, considering he represents the only 2.0-3.0ish position player we've developed internally within the last half decade...not sure what that says. Nothing good. (Someone will mention Yolmer, but that's clearly not the case as of 2019.) Let's just call Omar Narvaez the Franmil Reyes of catching, then...to put it in proper perspective. His bat is creating X amount of positive value, compared to those numbers coming from LF/RF/1B/DH.

We never needed Manny Machado...somewhere I read that. Well, somehow Luis Robert got over his constant injury problems, but doesn't seem like Moncada's going to be so lucky. Is this the same one as last year...or earlier this season? Impossible to keep track he's had so many "day to day" situations since joining the White Sox. Yolmer Sanchez, like Adam Engel...gets an 8th cat life. https://www.fangraphs.com/standings/playoff-odds The good news is we were just passed by the Mariners in "win expectancy" and that's without factoring in Moncada missing 2-3 weeks. 6th pick in the first round projected

He had that promotion for 1 year and 3 months before anyone caught on. Ironically, of the 23 players/parents/2 buscones involved or implicated, pretty sure Andre Rienzo was the only one that ever made it to the major leagues. I remember Anderson Gomes and Luis Silverio. The total amount skimmed, $440,781.00. Enough to screw up our Dominican operations for a decade...not that it was so productive compared to other organizations at the time.

Shhhhhhhh. Don't tell, KyYl E. Coyote... Signed, the Roadrunner P.S. Notice the list below, YOU WILL FIND ALL FOUR SMALLER BUDGET AL CENTRAL TEAMS LISTED...NO WHITE SOX (darned that Dave Wilder and his CLUB BURN in Phoenix, that's where the Sox money ended up)...to quote Thad Bosley, that's what has happened to White Sox fans for 38 years since JR and EE purchased the team. "The Dominican Summer League is vital to the development of our Latin players, especially the kids we're signing at 16, 17 years old," said Louis Eljaua, special assistant to the president and general manager of the Cubs. "It's their first taste of pro ball. We try to accomplish a lot of things here at the academy, not just in the Dominican Summer League Season, but throughout the year. But this is probably the most important part of our year down here with the players, the academy, because it's an actual professional season." Every club has at least one team in the 72-game regular season Dominican Summer League that starts in June and ends in late August. There are also playoffs. The Cubs, Cardinals, Dodgers, Indians, Brewers, Phillies, Rangers, Rays, Red Sox, Royals and Tigers have so many players that they have two teams in the DSL. Most players in the DSL are 17 to 22 years old. The best prospects graduate to the Arizona Rookie League or the Gulf Coast League in Florida then Spring Training, Extended Spring Training and lower level Minor League teams. "The Summer League is about the games, for me, and I think a lot of organizations feel the same way," said Dave Keller, the Cubs field coordinator in the Dominican Republic. "It's not about the volume of work before the games. We want to see what these guys can do in the games because most of them don't train for the games, they train for the tryout to get signed. We want to see how they act and react to situations, what their instincts are like. That's where the teaching comes in."

Jay and Castillo won't be released. The White Sox have too much respect/loyalty for veterans...as long as they're contributing SOMETHING positive. With Santana and Alonso, they really had no other choice. And it would just make Hahn look dumber, and bring even more unwanted/unneeded attention to the fruitless pursuit of Machado again.

The Chicago American League ballclub

Except playing McCann everyday is wearing him down to the point where he's not the same player he was in the first half...since Renteria also wants to DH Castillo, or he will continue to get those at-bats when Reed is released because we're afraid of completely pop the Collins confidence balloon.

Narvaez has gone from 0.1 to to 0.9 to 1.0 to 1.5 fWAR (2019) and still under control for 3 more years. Seems like progression. Meanwhile, we still don't have a future catcher, and are currently putting 25% of our eggs in McCann not regressing any further and 75% into the pursuit of Yasmani Grandal. If you compare 4 years of McCann having an overall negative value to that line, it's obvious. Hahn's just extremely fortunate that McCann has been the ONE good move he made so far that makes him look good... By bWAR, 1.2, 1.9 and 1.7 (on pace for 2.9ish)

What's the exact amount of money that's going to the Astros? Bukauskas was fading and leaving most Top 100 lists, but Beer has done nothing to diminish his draft day value and has undoubtedly increased it... So the Astros are paying $52 million and AZ $24 million on the remaining amount...#3/4/5/22 ranked prospects in the Astros' organization. Interestingly, the DBacks have added Gallen (Marlins, for one of their top prospects in Chisholm) and Mike Leake to their rotation, although fans will surely be pissed. Crazy times. https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/mlb/diamondbacks/2019/07/31/arizona-diamondbacks-trade-zack-greinke-houston-astros/1881640001/