caulfield12

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 12:24 PM) This year's LF is better than last year's LF. By far. And he's been better than advertised defensively. At least better than Quentin and Magglio IMO if you factor in his arm.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 12:14 PM) Viciedo makes too many outs against RH'ers. If he continues to do so, Pierre's .385 obp is an excellent way to upgrade a weakness cheaply. And what was his OBP for the White Sox when we really needed him in the first half of 2010 and 2011? You can't just throw out a number for the NL, when he's had limited appearances, and argue that's what he will do for us. You can take the same theory from his time the final year in LA where he had a really good spurt for 2 months and everyone was expecting that would carry over and it simply didn't. Paul Konerko's also making a lot of outs the last month, are we going to bench him? Why not benching DeAza, Dunn and AJ against LHP? They make a lot of outs in those situations, too. Or sending Alexei Ramirez packing, because he was clearly done 2 months ago and should have been traded at his lowest possible value. Ooops.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 12:11 PM) I wouldn't over-analyze stolen base rates in the minors. A guy like Mitchell is probably given the green light anytime he wants. The fact is his speed is top notch and he walks a ton, which makes him a leadoff candidate. His power is what could make him special though. He's still a raw player and high and lows should still be expected at this point. How many players though who stole 10-15-20 at the minor league level ever ended up stealing 30+ bags in the majors. It's pretty rare anyone learns that skill at the big league level when the instincts are not there in the minors. Not saying it NEVER happens...but rare. And valuing a leadoff hitter is always hard to do in the minors. It will be interesting to see where Billy Hamilton winds up pre-season 2013. The irony is that the Reds have Cosart there now, and he's struggling big-time in that role. To the point where their biggest need is a pure or true leadoff hitter. EDIT: He was 14/20 at Winston-Salem but has improved to 20/24 this year. Maybe....maybe. I don't see him as a Carl Crawford, he'll have more homers and 25-35 steals. More like DeAza, but with more pop than Alejandro, too.

QUOTE (hammerhead johnson @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 12:05 PM) Dempster has the lowest BABIP allowed in the NL, and the highest LOB%. That is one hell of a combination. It's like buying Facebook or Google the day after the IPO when all the profitability is gone. No thanks....buying way too high. We always do better finding undervalued assets, like a Youkilis, Quentin, DeAza, Quintana, Humber, Santos, Jenks, etc.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 12:00 PM) I agree with you 100%. The strikeouts are worrisome to some extent, but Mitchell also walks a ton so they come with the territory. The fact is his combination of power, speed, and patience gives him the potential to be one of the best leadoff men in the game. I still think Mitchell is our #1 prospect and easily a top 100 prospect in the game. As for Dempster, people need to realize that Hamles, Greinke, and Garza are all more attractive options. If I'm going to give up a top 100 prospect and more, I'm going to make a run at those guys first. On top of that, teams won't be getting any compensation for losing Dempster at the end of the year, which seems very likely at this time. Finally, there just aren't as many teams that are willing to sacrifice young talent as there used to be. The Cubs will get something solid for Dempster, no doubt, but to think they'll get way more than a Jared Mitchell as the centerpiece of a package is crazy IMO. Would have agreed after the first two months. Now there are some doubts again. Especially about consistency. That and the fact that he's not really a refined basestealer by any stretch of the imagination. The White Sox would be much more likely to stick him at 9th in the line-up to start out. Walker really profiles more as a prototypical leadoff hitter. Mitchell could be the guy...but he's got a ways to go.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 11:59 AM) I think they should consider bringing Pierre back. His .385 OBP v. righties would provide nice insurance for Viciedo and he'd come cheap. Deaza Pierre Youk Dunn Konerko Rios AJ Ramirez Beckham This is the dumbest idea I've heard. Pierre as a 2 hitter. Your what hurts? In the American League? Those numbers that he's putting up won't translate at all for the Sox. Two, we need power at home in July/Aug/September. We already have a 1 hole hitter. Why do we need any insurance for Viciedo? I'm more concerned with needing insurance for DeAza at this point if he wears down in the 2nd half.

QUOTE (Jake @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 11:47 AM) Y U NO Castro? DET is 13-14 against LHP, but not a discrepancy like the Indians have (10-17). 1) Castro would only be on 3 day's rest 2) They might not want him to make his debut in such a hostile environment 3) Want to keep him down in the majors to keep his value higher for a possible trade 4) They don't think Simon's 100% ready and might be more willing to "sacrifice" Leesman or Hernandez, who are already slated to end up as pen arms

QUOTE (scenario @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 11:27 AM) Maybe not. But the real question is what value in prospects is worth 10 outings of the current MLB ERA leader. How many more wins does that equate to over somebody else we might run out there? Because that's all we're getting in exchange for whoever we give up. And it's not like picking up Dempster = automatic Rick Sutcliffe stretch from 1984. There have to be serious concerns about any pitcher transitioning from the NL to the AL, especially coming from a big pitcher's park like PetCo, for example (Volquez).

QUOTE (RZZZA @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 12:14 PM) literal question marks? should be literal unknowns or TBA Although Axelrod, Humber and Quintana are pretty close to each representing real question marks, lol. Then there's the question mark of how long Sale can go this season...and whether Peavy can pitch nearly as well in the 2nd half as he did the first. Youk returns to Fenway as member of White Sox By Evan Drellich / MLB.com | 7/15/2012 7:52 PM ET Comments (153) Youkilis, Ventura on excitement about new addition There was a stir at Dodger Stadium in 2010, when the Yankees came to Hollywood for an Interleague series. Joe Torre, the ex-Yankees skipper then managing the Dodgers, was greeting his old guys around the cage. But New York's Alex Rodriguez wasn't there waiting with his hand out -- it took until the final game of the series for a public display of reconciliation. The Red Sox and White Sox could play each other now through the end of the season, and you probably still wouldn't get to see much interaction between Kevin Youkilis and Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine. This is Bobby Jenks and Ozzie Guillen territory. Youkilis, the former Red Sox third baseman who was traded to the White Sox, returns to Fenway Park for the first time on Monday, 22 days after he was dealt in part because of his strained relationship with Valentine. Boston and Chicago play the first game of four at Fenway Park. "I got nothing about any of that stuff," Youkilis said Sunday. "I'm over all the Boston thing this year. There's a lot of great past history, but this year I'm focused on the White Sox." Said Valentine on Sunday of their relationship following an April disagreement: "I have no idea. It's whatever he wanted it to be. Like I said, we didn't have a strained relationship in Spring Training, and I wasn't around last year." Not all is sour, though. Youkilis said Sunday he thinks the fans who were behind him for most of nine seasons in Boston will probably cheer him, at least for Monday. "Probably a good reaction," Youkilis said. "But after the first day, they don't want me to do well playing against your team. So you never know what you are going to get. I think it will be a good reception. "It will be different. It will be a different feeling, different dugout and all that stuff. Different emotions, but you have to bear down and really focus. I think once the game starts, that's all you really play for. It's what the game brings you. A lot of people there will be cheering me on and some people won't be. But that's the way it is in sports." Youkilis also put out a letter to fans that was published Sunday on ESPNBoston.com. Youkilis said he thought the letter wasn't going to come out until Monday, but its message remained -- he owes a lot to his time in Boston. "You know, I'm looking forward to seeing some people," Youkilis said. "It will be good to see some players I played with and people that have been around that city. It will be good to see some people and some friends that live there, and a few friends I made for a lifetime. So it will be good to hang out with them and enjoy it." White Sox: With Floyd scratched, Axelrod in Right-hander Gavin Floyd has forearm and elbow soreness in his throwing arm and was examined in Chicago on Sunday. An MRI found no structural damage, but tendinitis will keep him from making Monday's scheduled start. Dylan Axelrod, another righty, gets the start in his place. Axelrod threw two scoreless innings and 31 pitches in relief on Friday. This isn't the first time the White Sox have had injury troubles in the rotation this season. "One thing after another it is," manager Robin Ventura said. "But again, it's part of having a long season. You're always having stuff like that." http://www.mlb.com Love Ventura's understated response about injuries, soft-pedaling the plethora of rookie pitchers and issues with nearly every starter at some point or another this season, except for PEAVY. Ozzie would manage to twist it into an act of modern-day martyrhood to have his team still in contention in the same scenario.

QUOTE (scenario @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 12:13 PM) Mitchell is a much better prospect than many people on the board recognize. I think some of the hate is due to him being picked before Trout. Time to let this go... 20 something teams made the same mistake. It wasn't just us. Meanwhile, people look at Mitchell's .247 batting average this season and trash him without recognizing he also has a .373 OBP and .824 OPS. Personally, I think we're going to see a big jump in performance from him next year. He's got a freakish combination of speed and power for a CF. Just happy the Yankees didn't get him. They had him 2nd on their draft board in the 1st round. Hometown boy, he would have been their Mauer X 10. Seems like a great kid though, compared to Harper. Always smiling and happy-go-lucky.

QUOTE (gatnom @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 11:04 AM) If I'm not mistaken, teams only do not get compensation for players that they have had for less than 1 year. And in the future, they'd have to be willing to offer at least $12.5 million... So let's say we did sign Volquez had him through 2013. If we wanted compensation, we'd have to be willing to offer him that much or more. With that in mind, only about 10-15% of players will now fall into that category. And, of course, you also run the risk of getting stuck with that player if he gets no better offers and decides to come back to your team even if you don't necessarily want him.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 11:56 AM) Great article, but it does mention at least twice this just might be a simple matter of players having good years. Case in point his last line: "Of course, the hands-off game strategy works best when guys on the field deliver." I like a few things Robin has brought in, these things mentioned in the article as well. 1.) Not conceding the stolen base. I did grow tired of that. 2.) I misspoke about AJ I guess. I do like seeing our catchers throw guys out once in a while. I don't really see how Robin gets credit for AJ's arm, though. 3.) I do like the absence of the Sunday lineup for the most part. Even on Sunday after the all star break, Oz's style would have been to play a Sunday lineup and yes, we prolly, would have lost to KC in the rubber game Sunday with the Sunday lineup. I do like Robin. I do see some improvements in those areas. I do think he makes the same "mistakes" Ozzie mistakes in terms of the bullpen. When the pitchers fail, it's easy to blame the manager, though. Like Ozzie, he leaves Peavy in until his arm falls off, but that's on Peavy. I'm thinking he makes it difficult to remove himself from games. Kudos to Robin. My guess is if he wants to manage, he can manage a long time. I never hated Robin. I like him as a player and he's doing a helluva job managing. I just love Ozzie as well. It's not AJ's arm. They've made a concerted effort with short steps and quick pitches (numerous drills), holding on runners, pick-off moves (like we saw with Septimo to turn that Royals' game around Friday)...every aspect of cutting down the time from the start of the wind-up until the ball hits the pitcher's glove. 20-25% of it is AJ, the rest has been on the pitchers.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 11:56 AM) Great article, but it does mention at least twice this just might be a simple matter of players having good years. Case in point his last line: "Of course, the hands-off game strategy works best when guys on the field deliver." I like a few things Robin has brought in, these things mentioned in the article as well. 1.) Not conceding the stolen base. I did grow tired of that. 2.) I misspoke about AJ I guess. I do like seeing our catchers throw guys out once in a while. I don't really see how Robin gets credit for AJ's arm, though. 3.) I do like the absence of the Sunday lineup for the most part. Even on Sunday after the all star break, Oz's style would have been to play a Sunday lineup and yes, we prolly, would have lost to KC in the rubber game Sunday with the Sunday lineup. I do like Robin. I do see some improvements in those areas. I do think he makes the same "mistakes" Ozzie mistakes in terms of the bullpen. When the pitchers fail, it's easy to blame the manager, though. Like Ozzie, he leaves Peavy in until his arm falls off, but that's on Peavy. I'm thinking he makes it difficult to remove himself from games. Kudos to Robin. My guess is if he wants to manage, he can manage a long time. I never hated Robin. I like him as a player and he's doing a helluva job managing. I just love Ozzie as well. It's not AJ's arm. They've made a concerted effort with short steps and quick pitches (numerous drills), holding on runners, pick-off moves (like we saw with Septimo to turn that Royals' game around Friday)...every aspect of cutting down the time from the start of the wind-up until the ball hits the pitcher's glove. 20-25% of it is AJ, the rest has been on the pitchers.

QUOTE (GreatScott82 @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 09:54 AM) Apparently the Tigers and Dodgers are the most serious in regards to acquirering Dempster. Bruce Levine said Dempster could be had for quality young arms from the A to AA levels down in the farm as well as a solid young 3b prospect. Hmm do we have such thing? Not unless you consider Wilkins or Ravelo legitimate 3B prospects.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 09:39 AM) The problem is all the big market teams are going to shy away from Greinke because of his social anxiety disorder or whatever he has. Maybe the Dodgers would offer him something huge, and I know they are a big market team, but SoCal isn't NY or Boston or even Chicago. The funniest thing of all would be if Glass went crazy and brought Greinke back to the Royals. But not counting on it happening.

Seems they're more concerned about where they're going out on the town tonight when they arrive in Chicago. And something about girls who have been dicked by too many guys and not liking that feeling...

Mitchell's definitely a 50/50 shot, depending on how his season ends with BIRM. The more I think about it, would like to push Walker and see how he does against superior or elite competition. Maybe one of those younger pitching prospects like Johnson, Petricka, Rienzo and 5-10% chance of Beck but they'll probably shut him down. Santos Rodriguez is a good guess. As long as no KW kids, will be fine with it. Phegley's played there at least once, right? And was/is it bad memory or did Mitchell play in the AFL in 2009 after he was drafted?

Then there'd be a follow-up Dateline Special about the racism of Boston and/or Red Sox fans towards Carl Crawford, KW, Jim Rice and Ellis Burks.

I already posted this in the other thread about "KW whining/complaining" but might as well have it here too.

If Hamels is asking for $23-24 million and 6 years, let's just say, $140 million total value... Would any team in their right mind offer $120 million for Greinke? Surely, he will get at least $100 million from someone if Danks got $65. Marty, you're seriously going to tell me that it would be a wise decision for the White Sox to commit that kind of money? That's crazy. We've seen from our experience with Quintana and Danks this year (one a total surprise who cost nothing, the other someone who we're searching through insurance paperwork on for a claim) that it's probably not the best idea in the world to take that kind of gamble. Heck, Rios, Dunn and Peavy have shown the dangers of that kind of gamble. And now Danks.

QUOTE (Leonard Zelig @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 06:57 AM) What's wrong with Floyd? Forearm or elbow tendonitis, apparently related to his last start before the ASB Sunday against the Yankees. MRI negative, but he's being held back as a precautionary measure (possibly could start Thursday, but doubtful at this point) and is back in Chicago for further tests.

•The Phillies' forthcoming offer to Hamels is "expected to be in the ballpark that they know the left-hander will want, this close to free agency," tweets ESPN's Buster Olney. I'm guessing Hamels would have his eye on a contract worth $23-25MM annually over six-plus years, if he reaches free agency. - Tim Dierkes If that's anywhere near the vicinity Greinke will asking (and one would guess it would start at $20 million and up), then forget trading for him or extending him. Btw, Rangers are supposedly really after Hamels at the moment if the extension doesn't get signed. Trade Targets Who Could Bring Draft Pick Compensation By Tim Dierkes [July 15 at 8:26pm CST] Recently, Joel Sherman of the New York Post talked to an NL GM who said he does not expect a robust market for rental players this summer. Under the previous collective bargaining agreement, players acquired in their contract years could still be more than rentals due to draft pick compensation. But due to a rule in the new CBA, a rental is truly a rental for the 2012 trade deadline: traded players are not eligible for draft pick compensation. As Sherman notes, that adds extra appeal for someone like Matt Garza -- a team acquiring Garza can enjoy him for the rest of 2012 and all of 2013 and then receive a draft pick as compensation if he departs as a free agent. Keep in mind that for a team to receive draft pick compensation for a departing free agent after the 2012 season, a qualifying offer in the $12.5MM range must be tendered. Since that amount represents an average of the top 125 salaries, it will increase every year. It could be dangerous to surrender quality prospects for Garza now partly due to the assumption that he'll be worthy of a $13-14MM qualifying offer after the 2013 season. Still, take a look at our list of players who, like Garza, project to be eligible for free agency after the 2013 season. Which could be acquired with a partial eye on draft pick compensation after '13? Chase Utley has a good amount of no-trade protection, and given time missed due to injury and reduced production, it'd be optimistic to expect a qualifying offer. Hunter Pence, on the other hand, is a decent bet for such an offer. Among position players, Corey Hart also has a shot. Both outfielders figure to be part of their team's 2013 plans, however. Aside from Garza, Josh Johnson is a starting pitcher to consider. Johnson has been uncharacteristically hittable this year, but he has been healthy and stands as a candidate for a qualifying offer after '13, should the Marlins decline to extend him again. Despite their all-in offseason, the Marlins appear a long shot for the playoffs, it is possible they could move Johnson for MLB-ready players. Jason Vargas has been a hot name on the trade market. While I think GMs would find it appealing to control Vargas for 2013, I doubt they would have any expectation of making him a qualifying offer afterward. We haven't discussed Justin Upton types, players who are under control beyond 2013 and seem to be reasonable candidates for future draft pick compensation. Those are rare players. Looking only at trade targets eligible for free agency after 2013, the qualifying offer will be a pretty high bar, and future draft pick compensation can't be a primary consideration for an acquiring team.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jul 16, 2012 -> 06:45 AM) They also have the seating behind home plate and the Jim Beam club. But what I'm getting at is something marketed or directed at more middle class fans or ones who would be drawn to attend the game at least partially because of a promotion such as all you can eat or all you can drink/Thirsty Thursday's (such as most minor league stadiums still run.)

And yet Halladay is coming back this week already, right? He was out about 2 months, more or less, with something seemingly similar.

I still don't see why the marketing team can't do an experiment (just for the 3 game Twins series, it's midweek and one day game) and discount parking down to $10 and see what the difference is in collected revenue. It would have to be a lot better promoted in advance than the dynamic pricing deals, though, to have a measureable effect.