caulfield12

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 15, 2015 -> 09:20 AM) Please do. I wasn't tearing the team apart. I basically said s*** or get off the pot. Who exactly are you going to subtract besides Eaton, Q, Sale, Abreu and Rodon that anybody would want? David Robertson? That's more of a salary dump. We're not getting a Top 50 prospect back for him. Pocket the savings for the 2018-19 free agent class? Don't tell me you believe there's a hidden Melky Cabrera market out there.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Dec 15, 2015 -> 09:12 AM) Please pull it out. and while commenting, see if you can not mention the Royals QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 14, 2015 -> 03:14 PM) * If you can't add, as much as it pains me, then you must take advantage of said prices and subtract. They had a plan which supposedly included Samardzija. What were they going to pay him with if they have no money? It isn't like they are $20 million short of their projected revenues. If they are, they are crazy.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 15, 2015 -> 08:58 AM) I will give you 4 to 1 odds on Gordon, which is the low end of your ridiculous made up percentages. Care to make it interesting? You are all over the place, just last night you were telling us the Royals are in a far greater position financially to sign a guy to a big contract than the White Sox. Now it's a different story. Should I pull out your post where you are recently tearing the team apart if the White Sox aren't willing to spend due to the high FA price tags and fear of making another colosssal payroll mistake? Alex Gordon isn't the right player at age 32 unless they can only sign him for three years...that just won't happen in this market. I still believe the White Sox are less likely to spend $75-100 million than KC because the Royals are looking at offensive downgrades at three separate positions. At the very least, they'll go after someone like Ian Desmond, although he doesn't quite line up with their defensive philosophy. Actually, I wouldn't be totally shocked if they signed Alexei Ramirez and played him at 2b and LF/RF. They only have a two year window. Something like Parra, Ramirez and Desmond to keep them competitive enough. Veteran players mostly.

So it's more interesting to just state they have a fairly decent chance at signing him but it's certainly not highly likely but definitely more likely with Zobrist already out of the picture? Compelling stuff.

QUOTE (LDF @ Dec 15, 2015 -> 08:43 AM) in some respect, i am glad the sox are not running out there and signing all the top fa's. i will preach this, i trust hahn in doing this the right way. Why?

S-S Choo is still the only truly successful Korean outfielder in the history of the game...there's that. It's not like we can compare Koreans with Cubans or even Japanese players in terms of overall impact. Not much history there to go on.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 15, 2015 -> 08:28 AM) Believe me, a couple of the guys he is thinking the Royals are signing go elsewhere, he is jumping off that bandwagon. I don't think it's coincidence he came back when he said he was gone until Ventura or KW left as soon as the Cubs got Heyward. That's his next stop. The Cubs have enough attention on this board already. Supporting them the next 4-5 seasons would be like supporting the Yankees, Red Sox, Packers, Patriots, Man U or Barcelona. Who did I predict they would sign? 25-33% chance on Gordon...that's the likeliest, but at the salary and years he's asking you can understand why a small market team with the worst media contract in baseball won't risk hamstringing themselves with an exploding albatross of a contract.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Dec 14, 2015 -> 01:12 PM) Because they're rebuilding? They used Suarez at SS after Cozart got hurt, put an OPS of 780. Suarez is not the long term solution. He's more likely to end up a utility infielder ala Ramon Santiago. There's no way they trade Frazier/Cozart/Mesoraco...any combination of two out of three...for less than Anderson/Fulmer but more likely Quintana or Rodon as the target.

QUOTE (SouthSideSale @ Dec 15, 2015 -> 07:49 AM) Lol he just trolls with Royals posts out of jealousy. Nobody would be jealous of the White Sox situation right now. I really do wish some days it was possible to change your favorite team but it's pretty much a lifetime commitment, through good times and bad. And the odds of the White Sox winning another World Series in my lifetime (while not great) are still infinitely higher than my alma mater the Univ of Iowa winning a national championship in fb or basketball.

Okay, since the AL Central is so wide open, why aren't we being linked to any of the big names recently? And the Indians need a 3b a lot more than the White Sox since we just traded for one...we have our most depth at the position Lawrie would be moved to (2b) and the Indians unless they move Kipnis to 3b have nothing but bad and terrible options at that position. They also have something we don't....Salazar, a young starting pitcher with great stuff they're apparently wiilling to trade, or Carrasco, or Bauer. Nobody except for Greg advocated trading Rodon or Q for Frazier that I've seen. Plus, those organizations are intimately familiar with each others' talent because of the regional proximity.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Dec 15, 2015 -> 07:34 AM) Caulfield, why is everyone of your posts in a "Todd Frazier" thread about the Royals!?! Why is the collective WAR stat projection thrown into the Todd Frazier thread? It shouldn't be part of this discussion...or it should be in every thread since on the surface it's compelling evidence for why the White Sox shouldn't and can't afford to sit back on their heels the next two seasons waiting for...I'm not sure what exactly. More favorable economic conditions?

QUOTE (Dunt @ Dec 15, 2015 -> 07:30 AM) Might be dumb, but it's something to think about nonetheless: Sox are always slow out of the gate and Justin Upton seems to always put up solid numbers in April and May: April .277/.357/.529 May .279/.366/.490 June .269/.366/.409 July .273/.340/.479 August .280/.356/.500 Sept/Oct .250/.322/.434 Hasn't he always played the majority of his games in warm weather cities at that time? A big departure from Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit and Minny.

QUOTE (SCCWS @ Dec 15, 2015 -> 07:17 AM) Or their manager. What is his WAR??? Or WAR is just another statistic that is nice to look at but really doesn't translate to wins and losses. You could make a legitimate argument Rusty Kuntz (ironically a former Sox player not coaching for us) is the most valuable coach on that staff...and makes an equal impact to Yost.

KC isn't going to start the season with Dyson and Orlando both starting in the outfield and they're unlikely to get 0.2 out of 2b as they'll bench Infante for Colon/Mondesi or make a trade in June/July like they did with Zobrist and Cueto. Duffy and Young combining for 1.1 over two rotation spots is improbable as well. They will add another veteran pitcher (Gallardo?) and just picked up Gee for insurance. I guess this combined WAR stat right now is their best marketing tool for selling season tckets, but few Sox fans are going to be convinced until they start consistently beating AL Central teams in April and May.

About the only time we made moves that (supposedly) didn't make us sure-fire playoff contenders were pre-2000, 2005, 2008, 2010 and 2012. There was a lot of skepticism before each of those seasons, especially with getting rid of fan favorites in Valentin, Ordonez and Lee (of course, they'd already added Garcia and Contreras in 2004) and adding a huge collection of unknown quantities/rehabbing players/Iguchi/AJ, etc. It's almost impossible to be optimistic after seeing the Dunn 2011 fiasco and what happened in April and May after all the optimism and positive puff pieces last off-season.

QUOTE (BlackSox13 @ Dec 14, 2015 -> 08:14 PM) KC is rumored to be after Gallardo. Can they afford to sign a FA pitcher and hitter? Not unless it's a second or third tier guy like Austin Jackson, Snider, Pearce, G.Parra, Victorino, etc. They would probably be hoping to pay less than Alex Rios' $10 million...Dyson and Orlando would platoon in RF, Cain in CF and ? in LF. They'd almost have to go with a free agent option or trade to fill LF, as the internal options like Starling are a year away at least. Among Lane Adams, Fuentes, Eibner, Martinez and Bonifacio, can't see them trusting a position to a rookie at that position with the Royals already committed to using Dyson/Orlando in RF...and Colon/Infante/Mondesi at 2B is yet another issue. Perhaps they could try Colon or Mondesi in LF...but doubtful. Rotation with Bonifacio is improved. Ventura Volquez Gallardo Medlen Chris Young or Duffy Zimmer or Almonte That provides them insurance for Medlen (two TJ's) and also the ability to stick Duffy back in the bullpen, as they have no LHR until Tim Collins returns in May or thereabouts. Overall, a lot more depth than a month ago if they were to sign Gallardo. They could also trade top pitching prospect Kyle Zimmer (but often injured) or Raul Mondesi, Jr., for a LF.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ Dec 14, 2015 -> 07:53 PM) Bring back Mark for one year Does anyone really believe they're prepared to add $30-35 million to this year's payroll? There also has to be some concern about what Buehrle has left in the tank and how sad it would be to see two franchise icons go out in less than stellar fashion, after the way Konerko's farewell tour played out and all we could think was how he USED to be the best fastball hitter in the game before injuries and age finally took their toll. As much as I'd love to believe he would do just fine, a large part of me is concerned he would be better off retiring...especially if the team's out of the race early, it would be especially sad to see him pitching in meaningless games, rather than starting for the Cardinals, for example. As a lifetime Buehrle fan, he deserves that opportunity. Just don't think either will happen at this point.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Dec 14, 2015 -> 07:48 PM) Aren't Moustakas & Hosmer Boras clients? If so, good luck signing them to extensions. That's why I said the odds weren't that good. Not sure about Cain's situation/agent, to be honest. I wouldn't be surprised to see him end up with the Braves helping to sell out their new suburban stadium when they're ready to compete again. As far as Gordon goes, it's similar to Paul Konerko and Mark Buehrle. He stays with the Royals, he owns that town for the rest of his life, gets his statue, Royals Hall of Fame, he and Sal Perez end up as the two biggest iconic symbols, with Hosmer essentially in 3rd when he departs via FA.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Dec 14, 2015 -> 07:41 PM) For the love of God, just admit you're a Royals fan. Just like I was a "fan" of the Twins and Tigers over the last 15 years. I knew just as much about those organizations as the White Sox when we were competing with them...but it's human nature to follow or emulate "winning teams" so there's much less focus on the Terry Ryan/Gardenhire Way than there was from 2001-2010. Surely that will change again if Sano, Buxton and Berrios continue on their predicted trajectories. I'm more than happy to discuss any of the AL Central teams at length, but I hardly see any comments here about the Twins or the Indians, other than the fact that Cleveland is looking to trade one of their young pitchers like Carrasco, Bauer or Santana and there's concern that Brantley will miss 3-4 months and they're also contemplating moving Kipnis to 3B if they trade for a premium 2B. What organization do you want to discuss? I've made a number of posts here in the last 2-3 days and 85-90% of them are about the White Sox off-season.

QUOTE (SouthSideSale @ Dec 14, 2015 -> 07:37 PM) For the Royals, it's Gordon or bust. It'll be a battle with Angels, Orioles, White Sox and Nats. So you have Tigers, Angels, Orioles, Cardinals, Nationals...the White Sox are a distant 6th in terms of financial resources or playoff-competitive roster/s. KC has a roughly 25% chance at keeping Gordon OR signing Cain/Hosmer/Moustakas to extensions into their FA years. You also have to think that Upton might be more comfortable staying in the NL, where he's spent his entire career.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 14, 2015 -> 07:26 PM) How many $100 million players have the Royals signed in their history? And the news today said they will not be raising payroll. The highest is Gil Meche for $55 million and 5 years, not too far off from Abreu/Dunn actually. Of course, that was almost a decade ago, when nobody wanted to go to KC as a FA and Glass felt they had to set a precedent by overpaying. There are rumors they want to keep the Opening Day payroll roughly the same as last year, but they will open the bank for Cain/Hosmer/Moustakas and Alex Gordon if they can get any of those four to come close to signing reasonable extensions into their FA years. The odds would still have to be considered higher to keep a player than for the Sox to bring a new player into the organization, fwiw. Obviously it didn't work with Zobrist, so they decided that Colon/Mondesi/Infante (since he is already a sunk cost) are better options financially. For their perspective, they have a limited two year window left. The White Sox have the opposite problem, their window has been pushed back to 2017 and more likely 2018. If there is any time in history they would go out and spend that money, it's going to be now...defending a World Series championship. That said, they have one of, if not the worst local media rights deal in MLB, and it doesn't come up for renewal until the White Sox contract with CSN expires (2019). For the White Sox, they're just fighting to get to 3rd place in the AL Central.

QUOTE (ChiSoxFanMike @ Dec 14, 2015 -> 07:23 PM) I'd like a backup plan just in case Danks or EJ completely fall apart, but the top 3 is just about as solid as it gets. Not to mention that Fulmer is waiting in the wings if they need him. Assuming Fulmer's just as ready to go in the first half of 2016 as Rodon was last year at this time is as dangerous as those who thought Rodon might fly out of the gates with Chris Sale-like impact. The one major blessing of entering the season without a fully-competitive roster is that young pitchers like Montas and Fulmer don't have to be rushed and pushed into the major league bullpen in order to shore up weaknesses there in order to "win now." At least that will be the case until we actually see the trade for Frazier/Cargo and simultaneous signing of Desmond, Cespedes, Davis, Upton or Gordon.

Where are these percentages coming from? Off the top of my head, you have the Orioles, Angels, Cardinals, Tigers and Royals who are all in a much better position to spend money than the White Sox (particularly KC if it's Gordon)... The last five years has demonstrated that those organizations with the benefit of new broadcast rights deals are typically the one who make these kinds of moves like Upton, Cespedes or Chris Davis that will clearly be over the $100 million mark.

Have gone through this drill enough times (eliminating teams that may be in on a player or trade candidate) to know it usually doesn't end up in the White Sox favor when the numbers are over $100 million. There's a basic theme here though: The White Sox need to make at least one "big" move before spring training, Two, even that big move PROBABLY won't be enough to push them into playoff contention or boost season ticket sales alone, not at this point, not without adding a second tier bat and second/third tier veteran pitcher. Three, making a pedestrian move (let's say Parra, Snider or Austin Jackson) while keeping Robertson as the closer for another non-competing season (and maybe 2017 as well barring trades, due to the dearth of help on the FA market next year at this time) is close to absurd. Trading prospects for a Frazier or CarGo type HAS to be accompanied by spending additional money or they're simply making moves based on perception/marketing and not really having an actual plan to compete.

New marketing tagline White Sox 2016-17: Stuck in the Mud