caulfield12

And what would you have done to make them a playoff team in 2017, 2018 or this year, if you had inherited the 2016 team at the end of that disappointing campaign (after starting off 23-10 and sacrificing the top SS prospect in baseball for James Shields)...? Even if you bumped the payroll up by $50 million, it's not a sure thing you get a playoff team...except having the ability to do it in hindsight. Even teams like the Royals, Cardinals, Rangers, Red Sox and Giants have struggled to plug gaping holes in their major league teams on a consistent, year-to-year basis through Free Agency. Adam Eaton and Jose Quintana would be depreciated/depreciating assets. The two best players we have produced (fWAR-wise) in Escobar and Semien are still on other teams. You take back the Thompson/Frazier deal, well...you have Trayce Thompson, Montas and Micah Johnson on your roster. That won't help you much. Keep Tyler Flowers? Well, that would have worked out "okay" for one year. You want to sign Shark to a long-term extension? Good luck with that one. You'd still have a team with a core of Abreu, Sale, Tim Anderson and Rodon...and not much else, but an absolutely TERRIBLE farm system. Your rotation would be...let's see, MiGo/Shields/Rodon (injured)/Shark/???. So let's see you spend $50 million in that 2016-17 offseason FA market without the benefit of already knowing the results. The problem is no GM can be right more than 65% of the time on FA's, and the actual success rate ($$$ to fWAR production) is a LOT lower than that, many (are/have been) better than Hahn in this area but still not even a break-even proposition.

That's what happened to Dunning the second half last year (getting hit hard the second or especially third time through the line-up). He was dominant with his stuff (primarily fastball) early on but struggled to put away hitters with offspeed stuff or when he got behind in counts as the opposition hitting improved with advancement through the system. Dunning reminds me of Fulmer in a sense that he has a VERY GOOD fastball, but it's not a dominant pitch at the major league level. Hopefully ONE of them makes it as a 4/5 starter. The other joins the bullpen parade. Scout said he was 90-91, T92. Threw a lot of breaking balls for strikes and whiffs, but a lot more sharp contact in the second half of his night... The curveball note is encouraging...velocity seems a BIT down, normally expect him to be 92-94/95.

They have control of Abreu through 2019...of course, another factor here is Jose's "pride" and getting him off the field of play, which should improve 1B from a defensive standpoint significantly. Troy Tulowitzi, "the best player like ever," yet another argument for NOT putting all your eggs in one basket (see Belle, Albert) http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2769629-the-best-player-like-ever-the-painful-story-of-troy-tulowitzki?utm_source=cnn.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial

https://www.minorleagueball.com/2018/4/4/17153390/2018-mlb-draft-brady-singer-rhp-university-florida-scouting-report This article makes the case that Singer is suffering from "prospect fatigue" not unlike what Carlos Rodon went through in his draft year... Singer is listed at 6-5, 210 (he was 180 in high school), born August 4th, 1996. His fastball is his best pitch, up to 95-96 with boring action in on right-handed hitters when things are going well. He can also show a plus slider and has made good strides with his change-up this spring; a recent in-person report from Burke Granger at 2080 Baseball describes the change with “above average deception and tumble, parachuting out of the zone.” One of the few complaints about Singer in 2017 was the need for a better change-up and it sounds like things are going well in that department. So we have a guy with three plus pitches and strong statistics for a top-notch college program. What’s the problem? Despite the good statistics, several observers have noted Singer’s harder pitches, especially the fastball, flattening out at times this year. This is traced to changes in his arm angle although the exact cause/effect chain is a bit unclear from a distance. His delivery has always been somewhat unusual with a three-quarters approach and some whippy action. His arm angle and release point looked higher at times this year and this has been enough to lower his projection in the eyes of some very respected observers. There are several public videos of Singer dating back to last year but the camera angles are all different, making detailed comparison problematic. Personally, I’m not good enough at diagnosing pitching mechanics to say anything except a broad statement that his delivery has varied from time to time, not everyone likes this, and that he’s had some inconsistency with his stuff this year, though for the most part this hasn’t shown up in the boxscores. Is this all a serious problem, or is Singer being nitpicked? Honestly, I don’t know. If you step back though, we’re still looking at a guy with a major league arm and a strong track record pitching well for a top-flight college program. Singer may not go first-overall but he’ll certainly still be a first-rounder and probably an early one, barring an injury or sustained performance meltdown.

We really can't find ANYONE to replace Keon Barnum?

Too bad Hope Hicks didn't also date Schneiderman or he'd have someone to instantaneously come to his defense and write a press release defending him...of course, no conflict/s of interest. And this is still not as fun as watching Trump (and Donald "El Cheapo" Jr.) trying to take down Blankenship in West Virginia even though Blankenship is basically casting himself as another anti-establishment version of the The Donald. EDIT: And Schneiderman quickly resigns...that was fast. Republicans would put up a concerted denial campaign/fight for a week or two at least.

Good to see the Sox minor leaguers playing confidently and with controlled aggressiveness...

The Southern District of NY (US District Court) strongly disagrees...if Mueller can't take down Trump and his cronies (or he gives them a pardon), other courts are perfectly willing to jump into line to take a shot. Even if Schneiderman is taken down (becoming like a plot line from BILLIONS), someone else will rise to take his place...probably Gail Heatherly.

Collins had a hit in his first at-bat, btw, up to .240. That "run back to respectability" might be the biggest positive news in the last 2 weeks...along with Rodon/Hansen on the road to recovery and Luis Robert supposedly not too far off, either.

Then how much are you willing to pay Abreu for a contract extension after 2019? You're going to cut his salary? He's at $13 million for 2018, number as yet undetermined for 2019. They're kind of in a quandary here. Hahn needs to be at LEAST SOMEWHAT competitive in 2019, around low 70's in wins...yet what is the point of Jose Abreu on the team next year (or Avi Garcia) when they're just soaking up resources and playing time that could be going to younger players. If we are terrible AGAIN in 2019, then that really is going to make getting the best television/local broadcasting rights deal...quite difficult, unless they sign just a one year deal and put all their chips in on 2020. Of course, we have no clue who they will sign in free agency after this season...which will be another significant factor (or not).

What other tanking teams are auctioning off a consistent 30-40 HR/100+ guy? Moustakas will be out there, but who else?

What about if we trade Abreu for something valuable, THEN get him back for the 2020 season? How's that?

Good logic. Will the White Sox be bold and step up to correctly identify the next Joe Maddon when the time is right, instead of being loyal to Renteria? Because they haven’t (yet) paid a Top 3-5 manager salary under Reinsdorf...

He’s huge...fastball, slider and change guy many looked at for MLB bullpen future.

$14/2=$7...$7-$6=$1 Morton became an incredibly valuable asset. Holland became driftwood. As far as McCullers goes, the Padres could have done the same...his father pitched for them, after all. They threw a barrage of money at Latin America instead. Neither team did anything illegal under baseball’s rules...but exploiting loopholes.

Would we still be rebuilding without those three recent successes to market/sell?

Well, bunting a guy that hit two homers the previous night (and not a very good sac bunter to start with) to set up one of the worst hitters/players in all of MLB just defies logic.

Who polarized this country so much? You're probably going to find 15-20 posts in a decade of Filibuster by me before Trump announced he was running for office. Surprising the two state legislators who are most upset about this are African-American Democrats. The only thing that's NOT shocking is that the Milwaukee County DA is actually a Democrat, John Chisholm. Back to your normally bipartisan mediation of this forum... Chisholm’s decision not to issue charges provoked outrage from state legislators Chris Larson and David Bowen. “All indications show the two West Milwaukee police officers, who did the 100% opposite of helping our neighbor by invading his home and repeatedly attacking him in the shower, were found not to have contributed to his death and are each still on duty,” Larson said in a Facebook post. “If this is the law of the land, the law needs to change.” Bowen said he had spoken with Chisholm and disagreed with his conclusion that the officers’ conduct wasn’t criminal because they were trying to get Trammell medical attention. “We need to be sure the D.A. recognizes it's a problem that it’s being seen as appropriate to tase someone 15 to 18 times,” Bowen said. “It doesn’t send the right message and we have to get focused on how do we do this a lot better.” Chisholm concluded there was “no basis to conclusively link Mr. Trammell’s death to actions taken by police officers.” To issue criminal charges, Chisholm “would have to demonstrate that the officers intentionally or negligently subjected Mr. Trammell to abuse under circumstances that were likely to cause bodily harm,” Chisholm wrote. To prove negligence, the prosecutor would have to “demonstrate negligence to a high degree, consisting of conduct that the officers realized created a substantial and unreasonable risk of harm,” he wrote. The prosecutor also would have to show that the officers’ conduct was not subject to a state law that prohibits criminal charges against police if their conduct is “in good faith and is an apparently authorized and reasonable fulfillment of any duties of a public office” or is “a reasonable accomplishment of a lawful arrest.” Bowen said he planned to contact the U.S. attorney to discuss the case. In the past, federal prosecutors have charged officers who were not charged or were found not guilty in state court. Reached Monday, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office said he could neither confirm nor deny whether officials there were investigating Trammell’s death. Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Online

Keuchel was a 7th round draft pick, fwiw. Charlie Morton was signed for only $14 million, 2 years as a FA from the Phillies (was injured for most of the year). Basically, about the same we were willing to spend on Derek Holland for one year... McHugh was claimed off waivers from the Rockies. McCullers was available all the way down in the compensation round, at the 41st pick. They also had Carlos Gomez and Carlos Beltran in the mix during this timeframe, but no HUGE free agent deals...the biggest was Reddick, and adding Verlander's salary, as well as McCann's.

But they were better off WITHOUT Aiken, because the following year they ended up with: 1) Bregman 2) Tucker 3) Daz Cameron, bundled for Cy Verlander Appel was the obvious miss, but having Springer, Altuve and Keuchel more than made up for that. Not to mention they were able to supplement with outside talent such as Gurriel (Cuba), Marwin Gonzalez, Reddick (FA), Gattis, McCann, McHugh, Morton, etc. Then they leveraged the excess to get Verlander/Cole/Giles.

Look at it like the negotiations between the Cards, White Sox and Luis Robert. There will be pluses and minuses for every situation. Chicago is one of the best cities to live in...great nightlife, lots of things to do for single players or guys with families. For a Hispanic player, it might be the best place to play in terms of the coaching staff and feeling 100% comfortable. Now, in the end, whether that's Machado, Harper or Arenado...who knows, right? We've been involved in this mating dance for decades, and have almost always finished in second or third place (Belle/Dunn/Abreu/L.Robert/Robertson some of the more notable exceptions). With all the talk of opt outs, it might actually be better for the White Sox to end up with two of Pollock/Kimbrel/A.Miller instead of spending 50% more for just one single player. From an excitement standpoint, I certainly "get it," but I'm not going to be wedded to those three names. That would be foolish.

Mexico City and Montreal two of Manfred's "favorite" expansion possibilities... https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/rob-manfred-gives-expansion-timeline-names-two-possible-cities/ https://nesn.com/2018/05/rob-manfred-reveals-two-possible-locations-for-mlb-expansion-franchise/?src=rss

Blame it on David Clarke and his epaulets!!!

Jirschele...that's another possibility. Royals ties, so that eliminates him to those who never bought into Getz as a development guru, lol. Guess we might as well throw that name into the hat/ring as well, because...why not? Knowing the White Sox, the odds of the candidate coming with loyalty ties are much greater than coming from outside the organization.

The Dodgers have more payroll on the DL than the entire payrolls of 4 MLB teams (including the White Sox)... For those counting at home, that makes eight players on the DL for the Dodgers. Rich Hill is now expected to return on Tuesday, but until that happens there’s a significant amount of money piling up for guys who aren’t playing. Like $100 million worth of inactive players. Well, $93,465,000 million to be exact. That’s higher than the total payroll of four MLB clubs, including three (Oakland, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay) that have higher winning percentages than the 15-18 Dodgers. Among those injured Dodgers, Justin Turner (wrist) is out until at least mid-May, Tom Koehler (shoulder) won’t be ready until after the All-Star break, Corey Seager (UCL) isn’t expected back until 2019 and there’s still Julio Urias (shoulder) who is working his way back from surgery last June. Which is to say nothing of Yasiel Puig (hip, foot), Logan Forsythe (shoulder) or Hyun-Jin Ryu (groin). Before Kershaw’s injury, Los Angeles had already paid out $6,032,720 to players on the DL. In terms of wastes of money, that’s more than Mets are paying Matt Harvey ($5.6 million) this season. What a preposterous road trip. Day 1: Pedro Baez falls off mound. Day 4: Corey Seager blows out. Day 6: Hyun-Jin Ryu tears groin muscle off the bone. Day 8: 1st combined no-hitter in franchise history. Day 10: Clayton Kershaw injures arm. https://sports.yahoo.com/dodgers-add-clayton-kershaw-baseballs-expensive-disabled-list-175709473.html