caulfield12

It was a joke about the time back in 2006 or 2008 when KW went to all those veteran leaders (not to be confused with 2010, when AJ argued not to break up the team and they went on a 26-5 run to get back in it)...and they all asserted there was no reason to make an addition to the team because they had everyone they needed in house.

Congratulations, you've just successfully earned yourself a job in the White Sox front office...or, at the very minimum, an internship "carrying water." Choose marketing, ticket sales or public relations. All departments can currently use all the help they can get with "spin doctoring" these days.

Sure, but he plays for the Dominican Republic in the WBC. It's like saying John Jay is not Hispanic because of his name. It's also the reason we signed or traded for half of the Latin American veterans (Nova, Colome, Herrera...kept Castillo, who he played with in Baltimore, over two younger/cheaper guys) that were available on the market.

We SHOULD have the greatest collection of Latin American talent the game has ever seen since the 1950's/60's Dodgers and Pirates or the Dodgers of Mike Brito (he with the hat and radar gun behind home plate) in the 70's and 80's/early 90's. Instead, we have Yolmer Sanchez as the best player produced in the last five years, a "lite" version of Eduardo Escobar, who led the LA pipeline (if that's the right word for it) the previous five years and was dumped for Liriano in 2012. 1. Manny Machado 2. Fernando Tatis, Jr. 3. Eloy Jimenez 4. Yoan Moncada 5. Carlos Rodon (family is all of Cuban descent, 2nd generation) 6. Lopez 7. Luis Robert (positions #5-7 are really interchangeable) 8. Luis Basabe 9. Micker Adolfo 10. Luis Gonzalez (family is originally from Mexico, grew up in Tucson) That doesn't even count Seby Zavala, Jose Ruiz, Bernardo Flores, Luis Curbelo, Laz Rivera and Johan Cruz. It also doesn't count Omar Narvaez, who was by some measures the 4th best offensive catcher in MLB last year and had four remaining years of control. We can throw Leury Garcia in there as well, haha. There's just no way all ten of those guys couldn't lead this organization to the playoffs again, if not the World Series. But we're the White Sox, so of course we get Dayan Viciedo (the Sox version of Jorge Soler) and Avi Garcia instead of superstars. We can't manage to sign Machado, and we can't manage to hold onto Tatis (when we should have folded in May/June 2016 in the first place, but "fought courageously on because of JR and KW" and probably Konerko/Dye/Thome/AJ selling Hahn on the idea they had enough horses to go the distance that year.)

His history with the Rangers is well-documented. For some reason, other organizations are able to outwork us...you explain it then. I'm not surprised about anything with our Dominican operations since WilderGate. We probably had a mole or spy reporting out to other teams, or a rogue buscone who wanted to get back at the Sox, lol. Paddy, for being this supposed huge asset, has been responsible for Tatis and Adolfo, and that's pretty much the full extent of it for Top 15 prospects the past decade out of LA. Or you could credit him for Robert if you want (but not blowing way past that budget to sign a boatload like SD.) A couple of other kids on the periphery of bring legit prospects, but still 3-4 seasons away at a minimum.

So, the Padres were just lucky to build the undisputed #1 farm system in the game, and just happened to pick the kid who can run well, hit for power and field SS of all positions well....and we’re basically just unlucky, right? Just like the Cubs identifying and signing Gleyber Torres and Jimenez in the same signing class was simply the result of good fortune and deep pockets? Preller did the same exact thing with the Rangers, especially on the LatAm side. They were perennial contenders until recently when they got old. Most of the FA signings/trades that Preller made in the 2014-15 actually had decent years, other than Shields and Kemp (compare to Sox FA signings since 2011.) PS: A player doesn’t have to play for him to be scouted well on practice fields or in AZ. Once upon a time, the Dodgers had an embarrassment of outfield riches and tried to hide Roberto Clemente by deliberately not playing him in Montreal (AAA)...didnt work, the Pirates and everyone in baseball still found out about him. Scouts talk...just one BP session or back fields practice game, whatever, can easily catch their eye.

They really want to hold onto Hill. With lingering uncertainty about Kershaw, Ryu’s health always up in the air...maybe if they can feel about confident about Urias, but he’s not ready to go 180 innings. With our luck, it would be Maeda.

Except Pederson for two years makes no sense without an extension. We don’t have a need for Toles, although he probably deserves a full-time MLB shot more than guys like Engel or Delmonico. 100% it won’t be Verdugo, so there are only two realistic options, unless KW coaxes Andre Ethier out of retirement.

That homer he hit yesterday...just looked like a line out to SS....then it just kept carrying and carrying. It’s AZ, obviously, but that might be the lowest peak height homer I’ve seen in a long time. 2553 attendance...roughly the same as Sunday’s game.

Wilson Betemit and Ryan Sweeney. Adam Engel in AFL. Irrelevant or small sample sizes.

What proof do we have that the Sox are better...especially since Sale, Eaton and Q?

Then we can respond with what about all the money coming back from parking, taxpayer subsidies, stadium upkeep (subsidized), naming rights, MLB BAM Tech, NBC Sports Chicago and all the national baseball contracts?

If he didn’t, how did he get pinpointed out of 300+ players in their system? Remember, we were taking on money and also included Erik Johnson. Keith Law tipped off them to get back at KW after his his time in Toronto which culminated in sour aftertaste of the Wells/Sirotka deal?

800,000 attendance is like early 1970’s and 80’s depths of despair (other than 1977 and 83), with a crumbling old park and the rapidly deteriorating environment in the surrounding neighborhood. Yet those who remember going to games at the old park remimisce with fonder memories, it seems.

Hey, TB and Oakland were supposed to be terrible the last couple of years so the White Sox can theoretically follow the same path...in 2019, or ‘20 or ‘21. Zack Collins with a base hit to the opposite side, RBI.

Not sure which is worse, Danny Mendick hype for five minutes...or hearing how Renteria is going to be more of a hard ass and they’re finally going to focus on winning more at the minor league level. No Rich King, Jim Leyland was not the White Sox skipper....although he should have been.

We need the English Premier League rules where we eventually get relegated. Or the authoritarian dictator of a 3rd world country to spend crazy money to buy the team and up the payroll to $200 million.

Our biggest thread after Harper signs will be fans hoping to keep Jimenez down all year so we can challenge the 1.2 million mark in attendance...fun times.

Great, now the announcers are diagnosing something different with Jimenez’s heel placement. Looked pretty terrible that at-bat. Just out of sync.

This game is now a debacle. 1-4-1. Oh, well. We have so many young/promising relievers, one of them has to be our next Fry by the process of elimination. Now whether Fry can repeat is another question altogether.

Hoyer knew a lot more about Rizzo than Byrnes, just like Preller with Tatis (or Paddy didn’t advocate for keeping him convincingly enough with Hahn/KW.)

A “fair” but not cheap deal for Puig at 29 would be 3 years and $54 million or four years and $70...about what Pollock got, albeit less injuries and younger. Puig has averaged 1.9 fWAR the last three seasons. I can’t imagine paying Castellanos or Ozuna much more or less that that. And therein lies the problem...between our second tier of outfielders being unsure to even hit 2 and the opportunity cost that goes with not spending on a really good veteran starting pitcher. Of course, they SHOULD be able to accommodate two contracts like that.

It was officially Josh Byrnes who got taken, not Preller. https://www.beyondtheboxscore.com/2017/2/15/14593912/anthony-rizzo-andrew-cashner-cubs-padres-trade-retrospective Epstein still saw the player he drafted for Boston in the sixth round of the 2007 draft. In addition, new GM Jed Hoyer acquired Rizzo himself while in San Diego, so both executives were quite familiar with him. The situation was ripe for the Cubs braintrust to reunite with Rizzo. Unlike the Padres, Epstein and Hoyer knew enough not to put much weight into 153 PA from a 21-year-old who was probably called up too soon anyway. The Cubs trusted their scouting and player development.

But we can just anticipate the front office response from the Sox if he eventually sign with anyone but the Phillies for three years (opt out kicking in at that moment)...”our timelines in light of the Kopech injury and dearth of comparable pitching (other than Keuchel/Kimbrel) didn’t allow for a set of tandem moves that would allow us to legitimately compete until 2021...”

Except for it happening in May or June and possibly missing 2 seasons instead of just one plus. Like what they had to feel their way through with Adolfo, or the Angels with Ohtani.