caulfield12

QUOTE (LDF @ May 3, 2014 -> 06:15 AM) I have resisted really on why and how I really don't want to see sox trade Alexia, I hate saying this but for me it is a factor. Loyalty to the player a Cuban player. hey everyone knows that sometime you need to swallow the poison pill by trading players in order to get better, but how will that play out with other Cuban player now on the roster or any more future dealings with them or new players coming over. those our my thoughts, valid or not, good or bad. peace NC State's Rodon is of Cuban-descent as well...could end up as a determining factor in that draft pick.

QUOTE (LDF @ May 3, 2014 -> 06:18 AM) depends on the value and length of the contract. Jimenez's contract, for example, would be another albatross to go with John Danks at this point. Santana's deal wouldn't provided us a huge competitive advantage because teams want control for at least 1 1/2 seasons now if they make mid-season trades. And there's no way he would be pitching as well as he has with the Braves for us in the American League anyway.

QUOTE (Leonard Zelig @ May 3, 2014 -> 03:03 AM) It was Kalapse, but he's kind of like Bigfoot or Nessie these days. Speaking of...where did scenario go as well?

Hoffman is supposed to start again May 9th, FWIW. I'm going to side with those arguing that, even in a perfect world, there would be no way to control Rodon's rights after Year 6. You certainly don't pin your entire draft on Rodon. If Cooper thinks Hoffman has the more repeatable delivery (he's changed his head movement a lot beginning in the 2013 Cape Cold League) and the slider/elbow ligament tear concerns are legit (about Rodon), then the White Sox should take Hoffman if he proves to be 100% healthy in his May 9th start as well as the subsequent one. In a perfect world, they can take Finnegan or Freeland with their 2nd pick, but doubt both would slide that far...maybe Finnegan with the injury concerns at the moment. Write-up at the Phillies' fan site....good stuff http://www.thegoodphight.com/2014/1/16/531...eff-hoffman-rhp Rodon: Yeah, I hit some home runs in high school. Sophomore year (at Holly Springs), a down year in pitching, I hit four. I was an all right hitter, I guess. I wasn’t a bad hitter. I just wasn’t developed like these guys on our team that really can hit. They’re just on a different level. I just wasn’t there. Q: So what’s a cooler feeling: Hitting a home run or striking out 10? Rodon: I would say hitting a home run. (He laughs). Chicks dig the long ball. Q: Better arm, you or Russell? Rodon: Russell Wilson? Q: Yeah. Rodon: Really? Q: Yeah, better arm, who’s got it? Rodon: I think I do. Q: What about throwing a football? Rodon: I think it might be close actually. Q: How far can you throw it? Rodon: I haven’t really tried it in a while, but I’ve always been able to throw a football pretty well. I might have the arm strength, but he’s an amazing quarterback. Q: Hitters get walk-up songs. Closers get them. Starters rarely do. What would be yours? Rodon: We actually do get a walk-up song here, first inning. Not sure yet. We’re still trying to figure that out. Q: You going country? Rodon: No, we’re not going country. We’re more of a soul-ly, R&B, kind of slow song. Q: To lull the hitters into the 96? Rodon: (Laughing) Yeah, catch them off guard. Q: Saw on Twitter where you bought a nice fish tank. Any symbolism there, considering you’re pretty much living in one? Rodon: (More laughter). I never really thought about it that way. Leave it up to the writers to think about it that way, but no, I’ve always liked fishing. My dad used to have them all the time. It’s just something that’s just a hobby that I’ve always done and I just love doing it. Q: You watch the show Tanked? Rodon: Yeah, I do watch that show. That’s a cool show. Q: Is a high-end specialty tank going to be the first purchase with the signing bonus? Rodon: Maybe in a couple of years from now, who knows, if everything goes right. Q: Do you name your fish? Rodon: Yeah, actually I do have some names for some of them. I actually have a clam. I have names for everything. My girlfriend names them, usually. I have one black clown fish and his name is Marlin. I used to have a lot of other fish names, but they all passed away. I’ve had Marlin for two years. (Rodon takes out his phone and proudly shows off a photo of “Clammy,” his pet clam.) Q:You get an off day, no obligations, completely free day, what are you doing? Rodon: Probably fishing. Q: Got a spot? Rodon: I got a lot of spots, and I don’t give them up. Q: What was your role in Brett Austin’s twerking video? Did you have a role? Rodon: (Long pause.) Oh, I did not have a role in that Vine. I did not have any sort of role in that Vine, and I am glad I did not. Q: Did you coach him up afterward? Rodon: No. I thought it was, um, interesting. Q: Baseball question: Pitchers have to evolve. What’s different this year? Rodon: Last year it was all two-seam (fastballs). Now I’ve been throwing four-seams in, two-seams away, getting that run. Changeup ... Q: You went 10-3 with a school-record 184 strikeouts, dominated late in the season, got to Omaha. How can you possibly be better this year? Rodon: Just me? I mean, you can get better at everything. Nobody’s perfect. I’ve been working on the changeup. Just to have another pitch in your arsenal. Just really getting comfortable with it. ... My goal is to win every time I get out there. So if I don’t win every time, then I’m not the best I can be. Clearly. Q: How many times have you asked coach Elliott Avent to let you pitch that mid-week game against North Carolina? Rodon: Actually, I have not asked him. I’m interested to see who they pitch and who we pitch. I can assure you it’s not going to be me. Q: It’s one thing to be the face of N.C. State baseball. But you’re the face of Team USA. What’s that like? Rodon: Always great representing your country. My freshman year I had the pleasure of going to Cuba, and I’m of Cuban descent, so it was a cool experience. Americans don’t get to go back to Cuba, and my dad definitely won’t go back to Cuba. Or my grandfather. They don’t want to go. But it was a great opportunity. It was a beautiful place. The Cuban people are amazing people. ... I’ve had some really neat experiences with USA, and there’s nothing like it, when we played in Durham and had that great showing when we played Cuba. There’s some emotions there ... same thing with (facing) Japan. Q: The 2011 draft didn’t exactly go as planned. You were taken a little later than many thought (16th round, Milwaukee), the money wasn’t quite right, etc. How much does that draft day still motivate you? Rodon: I thought I was a good player, but you never know in that situation as a high school ballplayer. You could get drafted in the first round or the 45th round, you never know. It was definite motivation. I used it to make me better. I thought I was better than that. Luckily it ended up in a good way. I’m glad I’m at N.C. State and had all of these opportunities to make myself better. Q: Could you step into a major league rotation and help somebody in August? Rodon: That’s a tough question, but, yeah, I believe so. I believe I could do it right now. Q: Looking forward to getting another shot at Jameis Winston? Rodon: Yeah, he’s a good ballplayer, I guess. He’s a better football player. Just real raw talent. Should be fun to face the Heisman Trophy-slash-national champion. ... I just remember the guys that will get me. I really don’t remember his at-bats against me. But I’ve seen him pitch before and that’s something else to watch. That’s something to see. Q: Pat Burrell was the No. 1 pick in the 1998 draft. He always wanted to pitch, and his coach promised him he could start the 1999 season opener, knowing he’d be gone. What could Elliott do to bring you back for your senior year? Rodon: (Immediate laughter.) Play center field. Probably something like that. Hit second or third. Q: In the ACC, we’ve had some great pitchers come through here, No. 1 picks like Paul Wilson, Kris Benson, guys like Matt Harvey. How important is it for you to join that rotation? Rodon: That’s a pretty prestigious list. To be on a list with Matt Harvey would be pretty cool, but really, I couldn’t care less. I want to be on the list that we won the College World Series. That’s the list I want to be on. Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/02/28/366...l#storylink=cpy

QUOTE (ron883 @ May 2, 2014 -> 10:53 PM) people need to think of the prospect he would net though. A contender would control him for this year and next. A premier hitting shortstop who can flash the leather is super valuable. I think he nets a top 5 prospect from a contender in need of a SS If that was the White Sox, it would be someone like Beck or Trayce Thompson. The only way you do it is if you can net a Top 50-100 pitching prospect. Say, someone like Carlos Martinez with the Cardinals...a pitcher that's blocked but has a lot of potential as a starter but won't get the opportunity with his current organization unless there are a string of injuries or freakish chain of events. You can't get back the equivalent of another Ramirez. The only other places you'd consider would be catcher and DH/corner OF/1B types that were left-handed.

QUOTE (VAfan @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 08:24 PM) Maybe yes and maybe no. But it's no less realistic than the idea of signing Chris Davis from the O's as a free agent. That's a total pipe dream. The way I look at it is: 1. The Sox are going to need a left handed power bat next year. 2. They don't have anyone on their team (other than Dunn) or in the minors who can possibly fill that void next year. 3. That means they will need to get someone. 4. What are the options going to be? Give me 3 names more likely than Dunn who are lefty power hitters, ready to play DH all year, with better numbers than Dunn puts up by the end of this season. Obviously, no one can fill that in yet, because there are unknown variables in there. I'm just putting it out there that Adam Dunn is going to be one of those possibilities. Gag and wretch if you want. I've done plenty of that myself watching Dunn these last few years. I just think the Sox don't look at Dunn as the 2011 version. The usual list of names. Rasmus, and rearranging the outfield alignment again, possibly. Off to a slow start, hard to get a read on him and his value. Victor Martinez LaRoche Kendrys Morales Melky Cabrera (which one is the real version you can count/rely upon)? Adam Lind

QUOTE (fathom @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 10:05 PM) When Gillaspie returns from the DL, it seems obvious Semien will get sent down. That K rate is just way too crazy...he's had some big moments, but he needs to get into an offensive rhythm in Charlotte and rebuild his confidence before we hand a starting job to him in Chicago. And watching more of the Beckham Show is going to get quite old after another six weeks, then we'll all be clamoring for Marcus again because at least he's unpredictable and exciting in comparison.

QUOTE (Chilihead90 @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 09:43 PM) Not only did he drop a flyball in his glove, but then he failed to pick up the ball which allowed Jackson to reach 3B, which set up the suicide squeeze. He could have gotten one of those 2 mistakes right and we may still be in a tie ball game right now. That's the second time now he's allowed an extra base with lackadaisical recovery....the other time, he assumed Beckham would get it, but Gordon had already careened off in another direction.

Who's the last player our system produced who could actually bunt with any degree of confidence? Maybe Getz? Part of it's a symptom of the times, but geez, you'd think we would want to have one Japanese/Korean player (like Iguchi) who could actually set an example of how to do something so simple that most of us learned in Little League. Maybe coaches are afraid their best high school/college hitters will break their fingers or foul the ball off their face, but it has gotten ridiculous the last 20 years as a lost art in the game.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 09:37 PM) Tank needs to be in left field, where he's less awful. You're really going to play DeAza or Eaton in RF? That's an even worse idea. Or you want Danks to play everyday, with Viciedo and Dunn DHing? Hard to give up Viciedo's bat, isn't it?

How horrendous was Viciedo's error on a scale of 1 to 10? Lost it in the lights? Overran? Just a misplay? Whiffed? Juggled?

QUOTE (flavum @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 09:36 PM) Worst loss of the season, for sure. Not by a longshot. It was one of the games that Semien should have won with late homers that we eventually lost. Because it's the Tigers, sure...one of those 54 games every season that could have gone either way, difference between 100/80/60 win teams.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 09:34 PM) Because their team made a perfectly executed play after we tried a similar play and failed miserably (again, and again) What happened?, haven't been able to follow any of the game....just through mobile phone while giving midterm exams, haha.

Seems Viciedo is going to get blamed for this loss, and Quintana giving up the two out hits (granted, it was the heart of their order).

For all his dominance against outside pitches, though, Abreu has been relatively toothless against pitches on the inner half. Going by ESPN Stats & Info’s well-hit average stat, we find that Abreu ranks just 141st in baseball; he’s slugging a pedestrian .409 on those same pitches, ranking 76th in the majors. There's the "damning" evidence from the grantland.com article... Can we look at the pitches he was K'ing against or struggling the most with in the middle of his 1/25 slide? Was it more because he was getting anxious and getting himself out or was it facing the "behind in the count" Tyler Flowers/Adam Dunn/Viciedo phenomenon from last year, where you knew as soon as they went down 0-2 they were dead? Abreu seemingly has the ability to fight back from down in the count, at least from what we've witnessed in limited sample sizes.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 03:22 PM) And Shields is nowhere near Tanaka, Kershaw, or Greinke. He's a 4.5 WAR type pitcher who can be considered an ace on most teams. Age also plays a big part. The three guys you mentioned are all at least 2 years younger than Shields. When Greinke signed his contract, he was 29. I'd be willing to give a guy with 4.5 WAR talent (which Grienke does and then some) 6 years and $123 million at 29. I'd be very hesitant to do the same for a guy who's 32. Edit: Shields will actually be 33 come the 2015 season. Except Greinke got $147 million. Masterson's more likely to be the pitcher available for numbers quite similar to Erwin Santana (around $65-85 million for a longer term deal, compared to his $100+ asking price) than Shields/Scherzer/Greinke. http://www.kansascity.com/2014/03/04/48648...n-in-sight.html Everyone expects a minimum of $100 million and highest aspirations are Greinke's level. Barring a huge, almost unprecedented White Sox attendance turnaround (given the 8 year slide), the White Sox historically want to spread that money around instead of putting all their eggs in one basket (starter, bullpen, LH hitter, etc.) The exceptions, of course, are Abreu and Tanaka. But with Shields, we're talking possibly double Abreu's deal. No way.

We don't have much left to bargain with... Beck? No. Thompson, not really. Any of our middle infielders? Well, nobody would want to deal Semien or Micah now. That leaves Anderson, Hawkins and Danish, and you're selling quite low on Hawkins still coming off of 2013. Like trading Dayan or DeAza this past offseason, or Beckham, for that matter. Davidson has to get things together, for one.

Well, they're definitely going to bust him inside as much as possible. And then every Latin American hitter, seemingly, is susceptible to the low and away slider off the plate when behind in the count. Should be interesting to see if Verlander and Scherzer dial up their fastballs to try to blow him away early (aka game of chicken) or go mostly with offspeed stuff instead.

Good use of "belittles" though. Was looking for a status update on Hoffman, seems all the descriptions are "mild shoulder soreness." Shoulder is a scary word with pitchers. Although Texas Christian lefthander Brandon Finnegan was removed from the third inning of his Friday start with shoulder soreness, he is expected to make his next start. Jeff Hoffman (Photo by Carl Kline). • East Carolina righthander Jeff Hoffman was shut down for 8-10 days, coach Billy Godwin announced Thursday. “He said that he had mild arm soreness Thursday in his bullpen,” Godwin said. “We had the team orthopedic look at him. We are erring on the side of caution here and you can understand why. We just felt that 8-10 days would be good for him to have off.” Hoffman was coming off his best start of the season in which he struck out 16. He is likely to make his next start on May 9 at Southern Mississippi and will have one more regular season start at home against Texas-Arlington. www.baseballamerica.com

"There’s always these prodigy kind of players out there, that when they show up, it’s a combination of great work ethic and calm and ability to go out there and perform, that’s what I see with him," Maddon said. "I’ve heard about his work ethic. He’s extremely calm. Coming where he came from and what he’s probably seen before he got here, this is, you know, 30,000 people is not going to bother him. Plus, he probably doesn’t understand them anyway. So, it all works in his favor. Plus he’s really talented. He’s really talented." The White Sox entered Monday night at 13-13 with the highest-scoring offense in baseball. Abreu's been a big part of that, hitting 10 home runs and driving in 31 -- both major league rookie records for the month of April. But Maddon thinks Abreu's success has had an impact on the rest of the White Sox lineup, which has seen guys like Alexei Ramirez, Dayan Viciedo and Tyler Flowers turn in impressive starts to the season, too. "There’s a grittiness about them right now," Maddon said. "I’m not saying they did this last year, they’re not mailing anything in. Their at-bats are really sound right now. ... But I think primarily, the biggest difference for me the group, one through nine, on the field, is very interesting for me. "When you’re hitting Ramirez, what, sixth right now? I mean, Ramirez is hitting sixth. That says something. And (Adam) Eaton gives you a component at the top of the lineup that you haven’t had in a while, with that kind of eagerness and speed. It’s different. And he’s definitely a high-energy guy. "Flowers, to me, is a different player. Looks like he lost some weight. He looks to me like he’s in better shape. He’s got a better approach at the plate. He’s a different player. "I mean Viciedo, all the group, (Adam) Dunn looks good, but saying all that -- the guy at first base makes all the difference. One guy can make that kind of an impact on a team." http://www.csnchicago.com/white-sox/rays-m...-cabrera-tigers Detroit Free Press writer Lowe sings the now nearly universal praises of Abreu http://www.freep.com/article/20140429/SPORTS02/304290041/

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 28, 2014 -> 03:58 PM) Ken Rosenthal ‏@Ken_Rosenthal 7m Source confirms report by @keithlaw: #Nationals' Harper needs thumb surgery and likely is out until July. Cue more Hawkeroo rants on the subject.

QUOTE (LDF @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 04:55 AM) Santana and Jimenez did they cost a draft pick if signed ??? YES. That's why Stephen Drew and Kendrys Morales might have to wait until after the June draft and only play for roughly 55-60% of a full season.

QUOTE (Knuckles @ Apr 28, 2014 -> 10:48 PM) ◆ Adam Dunn paid for Scott Carroll’s party of around 30 family and friends at Timothy O’Toole’s restaurant on Sunday after Carroll’s victorious major-league debut. How do you make that black diamond shape?

QUOTE (ScottyDo @ Apr 28, 2014 -> 11:47 PM) This is super ridiculous, unless you wanted Santana for the bullpen. Of course not, with 20/20 hindsight, Santana and Jimenez would both be pitching better than Tanaka (well, Santana's close, albeit on a one year deal) and would never have a need for the bullpen with their bevy of complete games.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ Apr 28, 2014 -> 09:12 PM) Next Jose Quintana? Cashman would be fired. Contreras, Quintana and then another? He did equalize things a bit by stealing Swisher out from under Ozzie.