caulfield12

But those were both clutch RBI's!

QUOTE (ewokpelts @ Jul 23, 2015 -> 04:03 PM) I still think he stays. And signs long term. That makes no sense unless we're already spending money in anticipation of the 2019 tv broadcast rights deal. The only $100+ million contract divvied out will be for a younger, bonafide ace in the 24-28 age range.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 23, 2015 -> 02:32 PM) Nieto is not a scouting failure. We gave up nothing for him. If he had a 1% shot of being a big league catcher it was still a good move. Let's just say it continues to fit the narrative of swinging and missing whenever it involves developing players at premium positions. Who knows, maybe Tyler Saladino will shock the world, but Josh Phegley had a stretch where he looked like he could make an impact as well. Heck, even Jerry Owens and Josh Fields did in 2007. Would still love to know if we ever had a shot at Donaldson and what was offered...or if Beane simply targeted Lawrie from the beginning (like the Davidson and Nestor Molina acquisitions on our side).

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 23, 2015 -> 02:32 PM) Honestly, yes, I think we'd still 100% be that deep in pitching. We're not low on pitching until we trade Quintana or Sale. I've said before and will say again, unless EJ implodes again, I'm 100% ok with a Sale, Q, Rodon, Johnson, Danks rotation to start next year with Danks departing after a month or two for replacement by Fulmer. Puts Fulmer on the same path as Rodon (even gets him more minor league time since he signed so much sooner), gets Johnson and Fulmer nearly full big league seasons so we're not counting on them as rookies in 2017, and even leaves us with an obvious top 6, with Montas and Danish appearing in the rearview as guys who could also come up late in 2016 or in 2017 depending on how they lok. You clear out Danks...we still have a nice slot for Fulmer next year. You get those back 3 some legit experience in the bigs in 2016 and you've got a rotation that could be really, really good and really really cheap in 2017 and still leave us with pitchers at AAA who can step in, take bullpen roles, or even serve as the main chip in a trade for a major player. I kinda get the Buehrle thing, I really do. I just want the open space for those rookies. Buehrle would make all the sense in the world as the final rotation piece for the 2017 roster. 2016, not so much.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jul 23, 2015 -> 02:24 PM) The White Sox should do everyone a favor, themselves included, and just fold. It might perhaps be easier to hire people who are better at talent evaluation on the position player side...and changing the philosophy of their entire minor league system. They might make incremental changes like a Paddy here and the new assistant GM, but those guys aren't game changers. It's not rocket science here.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 23, 2015 -> 02:09 PM) I'd be saying "Well they added a catcher at the lower levels, they must have liked him, this definitely fills a need in our system and I hope he can make the bigs in a couple years". And that there's zero belief Nieto (who we invested time in grooming) and Kevan Smith and maybe Austin are unlikely to be long-term solutions at that position. Nieto has almost fallen off the map this year after receiving his fair share of compliments last season. Another scouting failure? Well, it's hard to be encouraged, that's for sure. We aren't hitting on a single lottery ticket.

The problem is the options are limited because few teams want to give up impact players on offense now, especially at premium positions. Let's say the White Sox threw the name Domingo Santana out there with Houston, a prospect maybe a notch above Avisail but certainly with bust concerns like all youngsters (Jose Tabata, Snider and now Polanco would come to mind if we were talking about the Pirates' system). Luhnow will give up the Kazmir package 100 times in a row before he parts with a Santana. And that's a GM with a stable of talent that added to the future stockpile this past draft. If you're Hahn, 90% of you is of the belief that a compensation pick's impact will come way too late to save your job the way things are currently setting up with the free agent markets over the next two off-seasons. You also don't have the ability to spend more than this past offseason, and the impact names (Wieters, Gordon, Cespedes, Heyward) are going to cost an arm and a leg. It's almost an impossible solution to solve. Logic dictates that only by substantially improving 3-4 other positions can you have a legit chance of improving the team substantially. On the other hand, the allure of that one big name (Russell Wilson or Cruz this past year) can be quite difficult to pass up. The one thing we do know is that this means trading Quintana or even Sale...and hitting that trade out of the park. The two superstars model didn't get them anywhere last year. Undoubtedly, we will be underwhelmed by any initial trade/compensation outcome because there's simply zero faith in our ability to coach up those A+ and AA hitters and groom them for the majors. Most importantly, there's simply no time to be patient if you go back to that three year window. What ends up happening is you get lesser impact because the ceilings on the near major league ready position players will be lower.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jul 6, 2015 -> 10:21 PM) I disagree. Hillary has the journos in her hip pocket. Their only coverage of Republican candidates is trying to get them to blast each other publicly, i.e. the Trump thing. Guys ... Trump is sort of a chump, but he wasn't trying to say all Mexicans are bad. I like the fact Cruz wouldn't bite. He said, "all the media wants us to do is blast each other; I won't go there." If Trump was a Demo there'd be no coverage of this; it'd remain all Hillary all the time. I hope you guys are ready for eight years of Hilly; she's a lock to win. Hope she leads the country back on track. Cruz is just bring a politician...he wants all those "supporters" to come over to him when Trump eliminates himself from contention...at least as many as possible.

http://www.heraldextra.com/entertainment/m...805a5c4d76.html Sandler has to learn he can't keep insulting 50% of his audience. Recently, it was posing with a dolled up Selena Gomez while he and James looked like schlubs in sweats or fighting with Rose McGowan about sexist casting call role descriptions. I guess if Kevin James can be the president and act like this (and lots still went to Mall Cop II despite terrible reviews), then so can The Donald...it's the backlash to the political correctness backlash. Not sure which is worse. Part of the problem is that it's unclear who the filmmakers think their audience is. This is a big-budget spectacle about 1980s nostalgia aimed at kids who have no emotional connection to the decade. "Pixels" is also insanely sexist, culminating with the winning male characters each rewarded with a woman. Seriously, they get human women as prizes. They literally call one a trophy. The first introduction to these guys as grown-ups is the two of them discussing which Hollywood actresses are hottest. Sam is a loser who feels his best days are 30 years behind him, at the arcade. He's the kind of guy who shows up to the White House wearing shorts and hits on the pretty homeowner whose theater system he's installing. When she rejects him but ends up driving behind him on the street, he declares to no one: "She went from zero to psycho in 3.4 seconds." Because women are crazy, get it?!

Astros make the most sense right now.

QUOTE (whitesoxfan99 @ Jul 23, 2015 -> 07:06 AM) For two months of control I don't think that is that crazy. I'd certainly want more if I was Detroit but that doesn't strike me as a completely ridiculous offer. That's more than the Rays got...although they obviously weren't expecting Smyly to get hurt so quickly. The Cubs would be better off trading Almora, because McKinney's currently their best outfield prospect, unless you consider Schwarber a LFer.

How in God's name did Yadier Molina get a triple at USCF? Avisail didn't contribute to it at all? Well, that's five blown saves. Waiting for comparisons to Addison Reed with that stat...

Cubs luck strikes again....ball up the middle that probably would have scored two ricochets off the pitcher to Rizzo for a forceout at home, so the Reds had two opportunities with the bases loaded and couldn't score. Chapman on now, 5-5 tie, top of the 9th.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jul 22, 2015 -> 02:43 PM) Beane didn't like him cause Cespedes didn't listen to him. Him not listening to coaches advice on hitting approaches is different then being a clubhouse cancer. The trade of Cespedes and what he brought to the lineup and his fit in the clubhouse were both viewed as some (although it was probably more to do with injuries) as reasons why the A's faltered down the stretch. On an unrelated note, a lot of people liked Hanley in LA. Clubhouse cancer gets overused. Was AJ a cancer, depends on who you'd ask, but many saw him as a great player to have on your team. Everyone like him, nope. It's no different from Adam Eaton. There were a lot of stories on him as well having issues with teammates in AZ. He was benched for not listening to coaches about outfield positioning. Some now think he's selfish for trying to jack homers more frequently instead of slapping the ball on the ground and hitting line drives. He also has had numerous issues with throwing and baserunning, including the time he didn't run out a ball twice down the first base line. If you're a Sox fan, you might like him, but the DBacks are much happier with AJ Pollock. In isolation, none are killer problems. When taken collectively, there's more reasons to worry. Was Nick Swisher a cancer because he didn't want to listen to Greg Walker and didn't respond well to being forced into CF and the leadoff spot? Who knows? Sometimes the perception stays regardless. And it's not like guys such as Jenks, AJ or Carl Everett didn't succeed with the Sox. Even Jose Guillen went for stretches without causing disruptions in Pittsburgh and KC.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jul 22, 2015 -> 02:40 PM) seriously? this is all you have on a guy who supposedly has tons of articles written about him being a clubhouse cancer? expecially out of boston, a city that routinely destroys the character of players on the way out. Sigh. You said you'd never heard a thing about him in Boston. There has been speculation around baseball and the blogosphere that the Red Sox might seek to package Cespedes to Miami in order to reel in Giancarlo Stanton, but up until now that appeared to be the extent of their intentions. That is not the case, according to Madden. Citing an unnamed source inside the Red Sox organization, it appears the Red Sox have soured on the Cuban left-fielder, going so far as to express “hate” for him. While that word may be a little strong, there is no doubt that some discord exists. “He marches to his own drum and the coaches all hate him.” http://calltothepen.com/2014/10/28/yoenis-...d-hated-boston/ The rest of the article questions how he went from a glue/chemistry guy in Oakland to a clubhouse cancer in two months, but there was way too much smoke coming out of Boston for all of it to have been completely invented or fabricated. You're telling me that planting stories about him in the media was done solely to placate Red Sox fans for not signing him...when they ended up signing Ramirez for the same position and Sandoval, two more huge question marks they now also would love to dump on other teams? If they loved him so much, why would they spend significantly more for an older player who can't even play LF adequately?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 22, 2015 -> 02:31 PM) The bolded is exactly what I'm focusing on with his K-Rate. His K-Rate is the worst of his career. you giving that list of his positive starts could be answered by me giving the list of his negative starts from the beginning of the year. Reality? Jeff Samardzija last year had the best strikeout rate of his career and the best numbers of his career for a reason - they're directly linkes. This year his K-Rate is very much down, 30% lower than last year, and that's not a statistical fluke, it's been that way the entire year. Almost entirely because his K-rate is down, he's a worse pitcher. That doesn't make him a bad pitcher, it makes him a middle of the order starter right now. He'll have some good games, like he did against Toronto, but when he can't put people away with the strikeout he'll also have some weak games like he did his next time out against KC. The balance between them is set based on whether or not he can strike people out. If people are putting the ball in play enough against him, he will get beat too often. If he's this pitcher again next year, he's a solid #3 starter that can help a team with a good offense to the playoffs. But...that huge, sudden drop in K-rate should be extremely concerning to any team wanting to bid on him. If he's giving up strikeouts for those other things...he's losing games because of it. If he's willing to lose games because of this strategy, then we should expect he's a 4-ish ERA pitcher in the future. If the White Sox win 86 games this year and need a pitcher in the middle of the rotation to put them over the hump and have a ton of money to spend, fine he's a candidate for that. For a long term deal, for a team that struggled this year, is extremely weak on offense, and keeps spending their first round pick on pitchers anyway? I wouldn't touch a guy whose K-rate plummeted like this with a 20 foot pole. Shouldn't we be comparing his k-rate with the A's moreso than anything he put up in the NL, since you're getting pitchers batting at least twice per game, which would explain a falloff from 8/9ip to just 7. Could it simply be the hitting in the AL Central this season is just better than what he was facing in the AL West and NL Central? Are their pitch fx and spin numbers that show his stuff has somehow deteriorated? Are the fastball and slider exit velocities comparable? Swing and miss rates? What about comparing use of repertoire from 2014 vs. 2015? Is there a payoff from pitching longer into games and exposing less of the bullpen? Maybe with the White Sox offense, guys like Shark or Quintana just don't look as good because they're prone to lots of starts where they give up 2-3 runs and end up on the losing side of the ledger.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jul 22, 2015 -> 02:14 PM) I dont recall Cespedes being labeled a clubhouse chemistry trouble maker. Only that he is more of a .250 hitter than he is a .300 hitter http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2250329...-this-offseason See article from about the 2/3rd's point on. There were a ton of stories out of Boston last year but I don't have a Globe subscription. This is the first one I randomly pulled up.

We should have taken the money wasted on Bonifacio/Beckham and thrown it at Epstein's lieutenants, like the Astros did when they raided StL for Luhnow, Mejdal and 2-3 more guys the next rung or two down on the talent evaluation side. Or paint a target on the Twins now that Ryan is back in charge.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jul 22, 2015 -> 01:03 PM) Can't wait for Andy Amito and Bobby Bonito to start producing. Must be relatives of Rangel Ravelo. Btw, how is it that the biggest power hitter in nearly a generation, Micker Adolfo, has yet to homer in the AzL? Between him and Hawkins striking out 1/3rd of the time...

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 22, 2015 -> 01:41 PM) That. $10 million for the season, prorated for 2/3 of the year, give or take the extra 10 days, winds up somewhere around $4 mil. It's not huge, but it's not worth ignoring either. And yet we have ignored wasting money like that on Bonifacio, Paulie, Keppinger, Beckham, Downs, Belisario, Paulino, etc. It all adds up. We can't even get our "value" contracts right these days.

Cespedes has often been compared to Puig, Kemp and Hanley Ramirez in the "guaranteed to screw up team chemistry" department. Maybe because no stories have come out of DET this year compared to Boston last season (and All-Star numbers) he's suddenly more viable again, but you can practically guarantee if Cespedes isnt't playing everyday with a FA contract looming that he'd become a major headache. Another player the White Sox or Tigers would desire from LA is Hector Olivera for 3b...if they were willing to part with him. On the injured list right now for OKC.

Looks like Jason Vargas might have a serious injury...MRI today, major DL time and they absolutely have to make a move with Ventura banished to the minors for the time being.

QUOTE (Lip Man 1 @ Jul 21, 2015 -> 10:11 PM) Makes you wonder just exactly what they do in spring training. The last 10 days of it were brutal capped off by Charlotte pounding them. They were flat on opening day in Kansas City...they were flatter for the home opener for Minnesota. In my opinion that does fall directly on Ventura and his coaching staff. Mark Uh, oh, you just joined "Team/Camp Balta."

At least we can be proud we produced two starters for the Pirates tonight, Brent Morel and Chris Stewart. So, there's that.

QUOTE (LDF @ Jul 21, 2015 -> 05:19 PM) i guess i didn't fully write out my thoughts on that. with LaRoche, the sox are stuck. no moves what so ever. i even doubt the owners will try to eat his contract. so will the sox pay someone for 15 mil to sit on the bench??? no, he will get his swipes in. They essentially did the same thing with Dunn...with the only difference being they won't have to wait 3+ years to dump him in July/August of 2016.