caulfield12

QUOTE (Wedge @ Jun 17, 2012 -> 12:00 AM) I feel like other than the winning streak we've been in a long bad stretch. 10-6 4-12 17-5 3-7 Win, lose, win, lose.

QUOTE (Greg Hibbard @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 11:21 PM) This team has lost 7 of 9 - just like every team does. It's a bad streak over a relatively small portion of the season, after an insane winning streak. I wish some of the same people that screamed "sample size!!!!" about batting stats could hold perspective together when this team goes on either a good or bad stretch. This stretch doesn't mean that the sox are going to lose 90 just like the winning streak didn't mean the sox would win 100. If we continue to play well against the division we will win it. If we don't, we won't. Losing 7 of 9 doesn't mean s***. We have holes, yes. So do most other teams, including competitive ones. By the end of this month we will probably have reeled off 8 of 10 and the naysayers will once again be the converted. Christ, let's all act like we've watched a full season of baseball at some point. It's actually 7 out of 10. When 50-75% of the fans disappear for starts by Humber and Floyd, I wouldn't say that's normal around here. Especially any starts made for a first-place White Sox team. When has that ever happened?

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 09:26 PM) The Sox need an upgrade at 3B? That's an astute observation. I'm Gavin Floyd's biggest critic, but what kind of logic are you using when you say the Sox needed a starting pitcher, and then ripping them for not trading a starting pitcher? I'm also, except for Marty, KWs biggest critic , and I'm sure he listened on offers for Floyd and Thornton. Considering what was received for Santos and Quentin, I'm sure those offers weren't nearly what you think they would be. The problem is, this is nothing new for Floyd. His ERA is normally about where it is right now this time of year. He'll get hot for 6 weeks, all will be forgiven. Extensions will be discussed on this board. Then he'll be mediocre again and it will be the offseason. Other GMs who would actually have to pay Gavin notice this as well. Keep in mind, KW could land Verlander and David Wright today. This still wouldn't be the Sox last 3 game losing streak of the season. And here's the column you were ripping not even a week ago: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/colum...,6968593.column Considering that a 30+ save, close to 85% conversion rate, cost-controlled closer nets you only Nestor Molina, call me unimpressed. Maybe you're right, it's better off if we don't let Marco Paddy or KW have anything to do with any more trades. Why would they give Gavin Floyd an extension if they have a $9.5 million club option for 2013 already? They're now going to turn around and sign him to an extension for $21-27 million over 3 years? That's like signing Mark Teahen to an extension when they already controlled his rights anyway. The point is even if KW made the worst possible trades in the history of baseball for Floyd and Thornton, their salaries would be off the books, our record would arguably be the same or better and we'd have another $12-15 million to use now that we know we definitely need another starter to compete this season.

QUOTE (EvilJester99 @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 08:44 PM) WTH happened last night.. I went to bed and we were up 6-2?? Implosion or what? Well, that definitely didn't happen, because it was 5-1. That's nothing compared to the feeling of waking up the next morning that time in September, 2005, and expecting to see a victory over the Royals and realizing we'd blown a truly huge lead and were in the process of choking away the division. A combination of Sale's wildness, pitch count, the choice to go to Jesse Crain over Nathan Jones, a 7 1/2 year minor league veteran/journeyman/AAA filler guy (Elian Herrera) consistently beating us all day long and Matt Thornton/AJ Thornton wetting the bed after the game was tied. At least Alex Rios had one of his best games ever in a Sox uniform. Unfortunately, it will most be remembered for two bullpen letdowns. Oh, and more reminders that Orlando Hudson shouldn't be playing major league 3B, certainly not for a pennant-contending team.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 09:01 PM) The point is they were never out of the race. To thing the Sox are going to continue a nearly .800 pace during interleague play is insane. The only way the White Sox will win the divison is by beating their rivals in the AL Central. That is really nothing new. It was just last week you proclaimed 4 or 5 games out of first is nowhere near first place. Now you have changed. Who would have figured? Maybe Dan McNeil was right. Dan McNeil was right if he said we needed a legitimate upgrade at 3B and another starting pitcher to compete. And two of the biggest trading chips we could have used this entire offseason, Gavin Floyd and Matt Thornton, are both at their lowest values ever in a Sox uniform. Your move, KW and JR. Stand still, you get passed.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 07:14 PM) The Sox lost facing Kershaw. This season is ova. I see Mitt's(caulfied) pendulum is starting to swing the other way again. "Let" other teams back in the "race". That's rich. Like 4 or 5 out with 100 to play is out of it in the AL Central. The Sox are flawed. KW would probably even admit that. So is every other team in the division. If they pitch, they win. Anyone who really thinks KW would consider trading Viciedo for a 3 month rental has not been paying attention. Every team in the AL Central is legitimately back in the race now. In 2003, the Royals were 6 1/2 and 7 games ahead of the White Sox and Twins, and that was at the All-Star break. They let everyone back in because the ONE thing the White Sox did better than any other team was win on the road in interleague play. Before the Cardinals series started, we were 23-7 in our last 30 road interleague games. 1-3 and 5-5 overall in interleague isn't going to get it done, and the next 8 games all present tough pitching match-ups for the Sox. This year, the only logical way the Sox can win the AL Central is to beat the Royals and Twins consistently. As far as KW learning something, I'll believe it when I see another starting pitcher and 3B added without sacrificing our future ability to compete the way the Hudson/Holmberg for Edwin Jackson trade did. Only the miraculous find of Quintana has kept this team in first for now, but not PHT. For the record, I do think it's inappropriate to constantly bring Mitt Romney into every single post or response you make to me. If you want to debate politics, there's a place for it. I think you have an obsession with Mitt Romney, for some reason. People want leadership, Mr President. And in the absence of genuine leadership, they'll listen to anyone who steps up to the microphone. They want leadership. They are so thirsty for it, they'll crawl through a desert toward a mirage and when they discover there's no water, they'll drink the sand. President: People drink the sand not because they are thirsty. People drink the sand because they don't know the difference.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 07:16 PM) Caulfield has thought Viciedo would be traded since the Manny days, no shock there. Nope, you'll not find one single post here with me advising that Viciedo should be traded. You must be confusing me with Marty34. Why would a washed-up Manny Ramirez have anything to do with Viciedo? In 2010, I wanted Viciedo to play everyday, and I wanted him to be playing in May/June last year over Pierre.

The other hurdle with Soriano is his is contract, and what Cubs President Theo Epstein will likely look for in compensation. According to Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com “The compensation for Soriano would likely come in the form of relief for some of the $54 million still owed over the next three seasons. The Cubs would eat 80 percent of the money as long as they got back a decent prospect.” To his credit, Soriano is a known as a terrific clubhouse leader, however even if the Detroit could get Chicago to eat most of his salary, they would surely have to include a top level prospect like Jacob Turner who is currently ranked as the 22nd prospect in MLB.1 So the question is, is it worth taking a flyer on Soriano while players like Yoenis Cespedes or and Carlos Lee might be all-around better alternatives? The problem in dealing right now for any player is that Dombrowski would be doing so without any leverage. Other executives — Epstein especially — know the Tigers’ need, and might more willing to play hardball in terms of a trade. Perhaps the more prudent option is for the Tigers to try and fill their need with older, more cost effective veteran such as J.D. Drew, Carlos Pena, Cody Ross, or Ronny Cedeno, and reassess come May or June, once they can accurately evaluate their roster. http://thefanhub.com/posts/detail/274097/W...Fit-In-Detroit-

QUOTE (fathom @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 01:39 PM) With Drabek tearing his elbow, Morrow getting hurt and Hutchison leaving the game with an injury tonight, KW should be on the phone with AA discussing Gavin Floyd. So you would be looking for future pieces or someone to help the team win this season? After the Santos/Molina trade, I'm not sure how comfortable AA would be taking another pitcher from the Sox so soon. On the other hand, it looks like we got fleeced by agreeing to take Stewart and Molina as major pieces in return, so who knows... Ultimately, you could argue we would have been much better off had we dealt Gavin Floyd and Matt Thornton in the offseason, as many wanted and advised. At the very least, you would have an extra $10-15 million on top of what you have left to spend right now to fix all the problems springing up everywhere. That's not even taking into consideration the talent we could have acquired in return. Now, we'd be lucky to get anything resembling a B prospect and salary relief. Heck, if you could get Beck to slim down and fix his mechanics quickly, he might be the best pitcher in our system right now to just into the breach.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 02:00 PM) The Royals are four back in the loss column. Will they ultimately pass the Sox? 15 games remaining vs. KC I think. Any team in this division, except perhaps the Twins, could finish in 1st. Any of the other teams could finish in 1st or 5th. If Liriano got superhot, they could even make a run at it, although I just don't see it all coming together for them...stranger things have happened, which much less time left remaining in the season. However, most would be shocked if the Tigers, no matter what happens with their rotation, Valverde and defense, finish lower than 3rd. They just have too much offensive talent with Jackson, Fielder, Cabrera, Avila and possibly Victor Martinez.

Is that it should be making it painfully obvious to JR and KW that the team as presently constructed isn't going to be good enough to win the division. Hudson has largely been a failure, and cost the White Sox again defensively in the 6th tonight. We can't afford "on the job" training and the painful lessons that come with it. On the other hand, neither the Indians and even the Tigers (because of defense and pitching injuries) right now have the teams to run away and hide. So fix 3B and add a starting pitcher largely by adding on salary and not sacrificing major league talent from the 25 man roster or you watch the White Sox be doomed to near irrelevancy and even lower attendance the next couple of seasons. Management has a clear choice now. They can't just wait for Morel and Danks. There's two gaping holes in the dike that have to be fixed, and that's operating under the assumption that Quintana will continue to be a consistent performer (there's very little chance he'll keep up his ERA of nearly 2) going forward. They can't go "all in" and trade for likes of Greinke by sacrificing Viciedo, Nathan Jones and Mitchell. They can decide to do what's in their power to fix the two broken parts of this team or end up falling back in the pack by the end of July. The other reason they have to add a pitcher is 1) to protect Chris Sale in August/September and 2) the odds right now are against Floyd returning, so you need at least one more experienced starter or you go into 2012 with Sale, Danks (if healthy), Quintana, Axelrod and Castro/Molina as your rotation. That simply can't happen if you want to compete, to break in essentially 3 rookie pitchers.

QUOTE (Jake @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 12:40 PM) I think the Sox would have been happy to give him a chance when the spot came up, but it never happened. He was sick of waiting and could make much more money in Japan so he asked to be let go. We obliged him because at this point the odds of him even getting a cup of tea were low. Let the kid make some money, if he pitches well over there we can pick him up as a FA someday Colby Lewis went to Japan and came back to have quite the successful career.

This loss really hurts. Huge start for Humber tmrw to try to stop the bleeding. Before tonight, 6 of Chris Sale's 8 victories came after Sox losses. 3-7 now, staring 3-8 right in the face. Bottom line is that no team, even in the AL Central, can win the division when you have two automatic losses in your rotation and a kid 6 months removed from pitching for Tampa in the Florida State League. Danks is the only "savior" on the horizon...at least until one month from now when the trade market clarifies.

QUOTE (Jake @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 01:05 PM) AJ hustles more than the average MLB player, absolutely for sure. I'd venture to say that his career doesn't get this far if he hadn't had a reputation for hustling and being in the right place at the right time. His defense lately has been getting lazy though. I have to wonder if it is because he gets far less rest than your average MLB catcher Not when running down to 1B on grounders or playing defense.

QUOTE (fathom @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 01:03 PM) Seriously? Those guys aren't major leaguers. We're not going to bid for Napoli. That means the BEST we could do would be either Doumit or Iannetta. I think they'll give Flowers a shot to see if he can hit at least .210 or .220 with power and not K'ing more than Dunn. DeAza's 7 game hitting streak in jeopardy.

I'm just ready to turn the page with AJ and Thornton and go with younger players. It's going to suck to watch Flowers and Phegley struggle, but at least they'll hustle and not take every day in the majors for granted. Yeah, AJ's been great offensively, but you just know that won't continue and then KW will end up overpaying or extending his contract again and he'll be mediocre and rebuilding will never occur with this team.

I hate Matt Thornton sometimes...especially in tie games. AJ, once again, never can move his feet and get in front of a pitch. That's the second time this has happened tonight. You just can't give up that run there....JESUS

Abreu 3/8 lifetime against Thornton. Walk him if Herrera steals 2B? Adam Dunn is playing super short.

You're paid $6.5 million to at least get LH hitters out. Jesus.

Somehow the ball still finds 3B, lol.

QUOTE (fathom @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 12:49 PM) Double switch, I assume. Only problem is you have to have Escobar lead off in the 9th I'd almost cross my fingers and pray Lillibridge could close his eyes and hit one out, but Escobar's been at least pesky. And having Lillibridge play over there defensively isn't the greatest idea in the world, either.

Matt Thornton in tie games scares me. 3 lefties to deal with here. RV was smart enough to pull Hudson and stick Escobar over there for defensive purposes.....and Eduardo's not a natural 3B either, his position was always SS before the last 6 months where he's been playing all over the infield.

QUOTE (Baron @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 12:41 PM) I would throw Molina into a package of whatever we are trying to trade for. That guy to me has bullpen at best written all over him. Bullpen pitchers should be able to get strikeouts when they need one. That's not Molina's strong suit this year. The only positive is his control and the fact that he's managed to limit damage when giving up about 20+ more hits than innings pitched.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 12:41 PM) No offense to Hudson, who won us one game, but he's another KW fail. I mean he's not getting it done. Bad acquisition. How many bad decisions does KW make compared to his good ones???? Greg, there was no other choice at the time, other than playing Dan Johnson or McPherson there... Johnson hasn't hit well in the big leagues for a half decade. We didn't give up any talent, the Padres are paying all but the minimum salary. Otherwise, we'd have Escobar or Lillibridge playing there and things might even be worse than they already are...he did inject a little life into the line-up with his energy and had some pretty clutch hits, it hasn't been a complete disaster but it's like putting your finger in the dike trying to keep the flood waters back while waiting for reinforcements.

QUOTE (fathom @ Jun 16, 2012 -> 12:39 PM) If you trade for a starting pitcher because you've given up on Floyd and Humber, then you better make sure that player has at least another year left on their deal. If not, you're looking at Sale, Danks, Quintana and nothing in the rotation next year. Cue Marty34 joining the thread and asking why Nestor Molina isn't yet ready to contribute in August/September.