caulfield12

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 8, 2014 -> 08:20 AM) However, the number of people owning guns has dropped dramatically as well. Fewer people are owning guns but more people are stockpiling them. I blame it on the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club.

Well, there's only ONE way to justify it. If you thought the White Sox had ANY chance of competing for a Wild Card spot this season and didn't want to give up any talent to try something different, and just because you're JR and tired of seeing Flowers hit .100 and strike out at a historic, Dunn-ish rate.

If you go back to some of the names bandied about: S.Smith has signed an extension Victor Martinez will be an overpay based on his age and production this season LaRoche with the Nationals, the same Adam Lind...meh Kendrys Morales...that's a possibility, but he's not a 30-35 homer guy by any stretch of the imagination Colby Rasmus...you're going to get the second coming of JD Drew/Alex Rios, all potential/talent but inconsistent production Cuddyer is injured Kubel is falling off the face of the earth Zobrist and Gerardo Parra are two of what are just a few interesting names on the trade market, at least to me. The Twins aren't going to just send us Josh Willingham, although he fits the profile (unfortunately RHed). I kind of doubt we're going to bring back Carlos Quentin.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 8, 2014 -> 08:00 AM) No history of 80 years of leaded gasoline. There is, on the other hand, a MUCH higher suicide rate here, and in fellow Asian countries like Japan, South Korea and even Singapore.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jul 8, 2014 -> 07:55 AM) Depends if you have thump elsewhere but generally you want at least one of your OF'ers to be a middle of the order guy if possible. With Avasail I would take another Eaton out there in a heartbeat. I know you love Garcia, but I'm going to have to see a lot more than one hot series in Colorado to think he's a legit 3-6 hitter next season with the White Sox. He might be forced into that role, but the jury's still out whether he will be able to produce power numbers to belong there and protect Abreu from being walked 125 times. And we don't have thump elsewhere. We have catcher, Conor, the possibility of even less power from SS and 2B (with Ramirez and Beckham trades or Alexei simply reverting to his offensive form of the last 2-3 seasons), and the probability of less or equal power from DH.

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Jul 8, 2014 -> 07:51 AM) I'd take zero HRs out of the entire OF if every player hustled and played the field like Eaton. I'd certainly like to see Eaton use his legs a lot more, but 3 Eatons and a ton of speed on the basepaths, a slap-it-down-the-line approach with men on, and a f***truck load of run prevention will work for me. Seriously, ideally I'd like to have lots of BA OBP and SLG and speed and so on out of every single position on the diamond but Dayan Viciedo is as much of an OF as I am a Ukranian figure skater. You have to be able to play the position first. For me Tank is a DH if he stays here, but it looks like Hahn doesn't have him in his plans. But that's fine, if you trade Tank for a SP or something then great, you can sign a DH as a FA. But no matter what Tank shouldn't be in the OF. Based on what?, the fact that he was listening to offers...that Dayan is intriguing to other MLB teams isn't necessarily indicative that he's about to be traded. The fact that only Abreu, Eaton, Sale and Quintana (and one would assume Avisail) are his will not trade list? Have you actually looked at the free agency market for DH's? If it was so easy to find outfield/DH bats, then the Red Sox, with money pouring in, wouldn't be in the desperate situation they are right now. They wouldn't be gambling like Lilian on a Grady Sizemore career renaissance against all odds. There wouldn't be five AL playoff contending teams with DH numbers below or close to a .700 OPS. The best outfield bats right now are probably going to be Melky Cabrera and Colby Rasmus...do you want to give those guys $40-80 million to replace Viciedo's $5 million? Is that even going to be a clear upgrade...and are those players going to lead you to the playoffs in 2016/17/18? Maybe, but probably not.

Tyler Flowers won't make it to age 34 in the big leagues. Well...we had our chances to go after guys like Suzuki and Ruiz in FA and we passed. And yet there's still not solution in sight. It's clearly not Josh Phegley (and take all those offensive numbers in Charlotte with a huge grain of salt), and reports are that Kevan Smith is raw defensively (still) as well. So time to get creative, Rick Hahn.

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Jul 8, 2014 -> 07:45 AM) Thank you for this history lesson, I did not know this. I think a lot about Hawk is vastly overstated, mainly when people question his knowledge of the game. The guy, as Stone says, knows the game backwards and forwards. Maybe he wasn't cut out to be a GM but neither are any of us fans. And also I'm not sure about that era but I am guessing that back then getting good video on someone was probably next to impossible given the technology and it would have been a s***load more difficult to gather current, quality scouting observations and then access all of that information when necessary. Back then I imagine being a GM was a lot more of a "he said/she said" sort of thing than the pseudoscience it has become today. You trusted your scouts and network of close advisors. They were like gold.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Jul 8, 2014 -> 05:59 AM) What can you trade for that puts your rebuilding in a better position without Quintana? Two top 10 prospects? I think I'd still prefer the 25-year old proven starting pitcher with the team friendly contract until 2020. They're not going to give you Stroman and Daniel Norris. In all likelihood, you're not even going to get one of those guys. You might get Sanchez, but how does that help the White Sox, exactly? The Blue Jays weren't willing to give up EITHER Stroman or Norris straight up for Samardzijia, let alone both of them.

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Jul 8, 2014 -> 07:37 AM) Also kudos to Dayan, keep bumping up that trade value. Mariners were watching right? They should have been. Watching and dreaming all over him. And slobbering. The Padres extended Seth Smith yesterday. Options are dwindling for LF, especially a LH-hitting LFer. Do you want to be like the Red Sox and have 12 home runs combined out of your outfield on July 8th, 2015? If Bradley Jr. is the equivalent of Adam Eaton, then Nava/Holt/Sizemore/Victorino/Gomes is a fair approximation of what we'll have next season.

The confusion isn't about the White Sox. It's more to do with the up-and-down nature of the Red Sox over the last three seasons. Maybe that Carroll actually won another game as a starter, but it's pretty clear from the body language and lack of hustle/fire (except for Pedroia) that they're going through the motions right now. Bradley Jr. has been playing really hard too, hitting finally and 10 outfield assists, from CF of all places. As far as the Red Sox go, all you need to know is their outfielders have 12 homers on the entire season, COMBINED. Viciedo, who lots of people want to trade now, is at 11. In fact, Gordon Edes is the one who started the Viciedo to Boston rumors....over names like Workman and Dubront...because of how little offense they're getting from their corners, and the fact that LF would give Viciedo a lot less territory to cover in Boston, and he would have more opportunities to take advantage of Green Monster singles to throw runners out at 2B. It's logical enough for Viciedo to be a fit in Boston. Just hoping he wouldn't go all David Ortiz Jr. after arriving there, like Big Papi when he left the Metrodome.

Yet another reason for the Cubs not to assume smooth sailing with all their prospects... What would have been the odds a month ago that prized rookie Xander Bogaerts could walk onto Yawkey Way within a half hour after a game was over and not be mobbed by autograph seekers? But there was Bogaerts, accompanied by a friend, looking like just another college kid with a back pack, blending into the crowd and walking down the street unbothered. That comes with the territory, apparently, when you’re batting just .107 (11-for-103) since June 4. Before he left the park, Bogaerts was a postgame visitor in Farrell’s office, but contrary to what you might think, there was no demotion in the offing. Farrell made that clear before the game. “The one thing we have to do is be consistent with him, and he feels and senses the positive view of him,” Farrell said. “This is a long-term player for us and we’re not going to abandon someone because there are some growing pains along the way.” Bogaerts had a couple of hits in Sunday’s 7-6 loss, the Monster taking a home run away from him and converting it into a single, but he was 0-for-3 Monday. www.bostonglobe.com/sports (Edes)

Or Doubront for the bullpen. Good luck getting anything but salary relief for Peavy with his numbers this year.

and they don't feel comfortable with Phegley as the #1. Mariners Designate John Buck For AssignmentBy Steve Adams [July 8, 2014 at 12:04am CDT]The Mariners have designated veteran catcher John Buck for assignment, according to Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times (Twitter link). He notes in a followup tweet that it seems likely the Mariners will recall Jesus Sucre from Triple-A Tacoma. Buck, who turned 34 years old Monday, inked a one-year, $1MM contract with the Mariners to serve as the backup to young catcher Mike Zunino. He’s struggled to get on base and hit for average in recent years, but he’d shown good pop until this season with Seattle. In 27 games (92 plate appearances), Buck was hitting just .226/.293/.286 with one home run. Divish notes that the move likely won’t go over well in the Mariners’ locker room, as Buck was popular among his teammates. He adds, however, that there had been growing concern from the Mariners’ decision-makers over Buck’s receiving and blocking skills with the staff — particularly the team’s harder-throwing pitchers. Indeed, Buck grades out poorly in terms of pitch-framing metrics (per StatCorner.com’s Matthew Carruth and per Baseball Prospectus), although that’s hardly a new trend. Buck had one passed ball on the season and had been behind the dish for 11 wild pitches in just 164 innings, so the Mariners likely felt that some of those could have been blocked. A veteran of 11 Major League seasons between the Royals, Blue Jays, Marlins, Mets, Pirates and Mariners, Buck is a lifetime .234/.301/.398 hitter.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/americans-ar...-190304928.html Dedicated to Greg775 and the denizens of Lawrence (KS) Applebee's family restaurants.

As Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle explained in late June, Aiken would become a free agent if he failed his physical and the Astros did not make an offer of at least 40 percent of his slot value (roughly $3.17MM). Clearly, based on Heyman’s report, Houston is still comfortable enough with Aiken’s elbow that this scenario is unlikely. However, the Astros would also lose the value of Aiken’s slot from their bonus pool should he elect not to sign, which would be problematic. The Astros were set to save about $1.4MM on Aiken’s original $6.5MM bonus, and a great deal of those savings were reserved for the $1.5MM bonus they’ve agreed to with fifth-rounder Jacob Nix – a bonus that is $1.13MM over slot. It is in Houston’s best interest to get some form of deal worked out, as losing Aiken’s slot would drop Houston’s overall pool to roughly $5.44MM, leaving them unable to officially sign Nix at that figure without incurring penalties in future drafts (the maximum penalty, which is enforced if a team exceeds its draft pool by more than 15 percent, is the forfeiture of a team’s next two first-round picks and a 100 percent luxury tax on the overage). Also, reports from the Chronicle's Drellich that Flores (Aiken's personal trainer) says Brady is "absolutely healthy." Interesting to see how this one ends up. Maybe Aiken's camp is going to ask for some kind of addendum where if he doesn't go down to TJ surgery within 6-10 years they will have to pay back the $1.5 million they're subtracting for the physical results.

Maybe there's TOO many religious movies? 1. Grander than the Grand Budapest. Thought “The Grand Budapest Hotel” was the biggest indie movie of the year? While no slouch at $58 million, it was actually beaten out by a couple of movies you may have never heard of: faith-based dramas “Son of God” ($59 million) and “God's Not Dead” ($60 million), as well as animated comedy “The Nut Job” ($64 million). TriStar Pictures 2. Believing in God trumps believing in ghosts. Faith-based dramas far outgrossed horror movies in 2014 thus far, with “Heaven is For Real” leading the pack with $90 million and “Son of God” and “God's Not Dead” both near the $60 million range. The highest grossing horror movie of the year? “Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones,” which has only made $32 million.

http://voices.suntimes.com/sports/abreu-th...tar-experience/ Abreu's family has been in the U.S. for two months (in Florida, one would assume Miami) and will be with him throughout the All-Star game festivities in Minnesota. Interesting they're not in Chicago for the summer, but maybe they're more comfortable in Florida.

Almora, above and beyond him being rushed a level with less than a half-season to establish himself, has also been a pretty big disappointment in 2014. Then you couple that with the injuries to Edwards and Soler and you have 4 of the top 6 struggling for one reason or another. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2121375...cts-for-week-14 Cubs' report that "spins" every single player's accomplishments to make them seem like world beaters

QUOTE (LDF @ Jul 7, 2014 -> 10:17 PM) whomever thinks that the red sox will trade to be a buyer is sadly mistaken. they are already rumored in trying to trade to be sellers. Except nobody will take Jake Peavy off their hands, haha.

Greg, how can you explain why there's statistically very very few murders/homicides here in China? If 90%+ of people don't believe in God, there must be something else at play. Most don't even follow the "Golden Rule" simply because of the fact that there's so much competition for space/jobs/resources/time waiting in lines or getting onto subways before others can even try to get off... So, if you want less violence: 1) Fewer guns (guns are illegal in China except for police or military) 2) More government authority/control (as someone pointed out, nobody has the political will to occupy inner cities with the National Guard to quell the violence, and, as Balta pointed out, there's not enough outrage that blocs of voters are organizing in a way to take their frustration out on politicians in any concerted way) 3) There's no culture of personal shame/responsibility. Once again, in China, the shame you bring on your family for doing something terrible like murdering another person...heck, it's nearly impossible for a single woman to have a child without being married here because of the strong social stigma against it. In most inner cities, there's the feeling there is nothing to lose joining a gang/dealing drugs, etc., because who would want to work at McDonald's or Taco Bell and be stuck with a minimum wage job when you can't even support yourself, let alone a family, on that pay?

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Jul 7, 2014 -> 05:36 PM) I guess I mean that with his arm, if he throws strikes, he's a late inning reliever of some kind. But if he doesn't throw strikes then he's not a Major League player. You could then say that Maurer's ultimate floor is a minor league player. But then again, given Tank's atrocious defense, as an all-bat right-handed platoon bat that can't really play the field much, his ultimate floor is basically the same thing, a minor leaguer or one of those guys who bounces around team to team always making under $2M per, mostly around the minimum to $1M. So in either case you are potentially dealing with something just about worthless. Still, it all depends on Coop. All you want IMO is talent out of Viciedo, not some low ceiling crap that can't even become at least a #3. Get an arm and if Coop likes him a lot and thinks he can work some magic, then you look at that deal as trading for a potential mid-to-top end of the rotation starter. If that's the player you want, and the second piece is likely to be far lesser anyway, don't get too greedy. Get the guy you want and move on. Viciedo doesn't have the dramatic splits vs. RHP/LHP as in years past. You're basically saying he's worth less than Jeff Keppinger, Scott Downs and about the same as Paulino. Not buying it. We've been able to find useful pieces in Guerra, Carroll, Putnam and Noesi without giving up a thing for them. We developed Petrick and Webb internally. Why would we give up our 3rd best power hitter and an everyday position player for that? If this was a case of Joe Borchard for Matt Thornton, sure. Or Guerrier for Damaso Marte.

Not surprisingly, the Cubs have been blown out 3 games in a row. Have to feel sorry for the veterans still remaining on that team. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2121860...rough-mlb-draft The failures/injuries to Appel, Correa and Aiken show the dangers of building through the draft.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jul 7, 2014 -> 08:56 PM) Man, Viciedo and Dunn are hot. And they've been doing it against good teams that may want trade pieces. If ever they are tradeable, now is the time. Or is this the real Viciedo? If the past four games are the real Viciedo, he is Mini-Abreu. He has teased before. This is when you have to trust your scouts I guess. p.s. I haven't changed my position on Dunn. I still am of the opinion Sox get very very little in return if anything. Except the Red Sox suck, are flat and in last place now in the AL East. And that was Dunn's first HR/RBI since the Giants series. Finally, Buchholz had a 6+ ERA coming into the game.

QUOTE (flavum @ Jul 7, 2014 -> 08:56 PM) 7-3 the last 10...who are these guys? Don't do it flavum (should be 8-2 and sniffing .500). You'll jinx them as soon as you get a little optimistic again, haha. Especially with how flat the Red Sox looked and Sale/Quintana/Danks going. Anything other than 3/4 would feel pretty disappointing now. And Cle just got beaten by a Yankees' rookie, only one game behind the Indians now.