whitesox61382

Can you guys quit with this BS injury stuff with Ponson? There have been NO credible sources that have confirmed that he DOES have a torn rotator cuff. You can say the same thing about half the pitchers in the majors with the stress that they put on their arm. All we heard last offseason after we got Colon was that he was injuried and he wouldn't last the whole season, and all he did was throw a career high 242 innings and put together a typical Colon type year. Getting Ponson at 6M/yr would be a very good signing.

A 3 way trade was just made between the Jays, Rockies, and Devil Rays. Jays got: Justin Speier RP(from Colorado) Rockies got: Joe Kennedy LP(from Tampa) Devil Rays got: Mark Hendrickson LP(from Toronto) I am not sure if this was the trade that you were refering too.

I hope the Sox can find a way to get their hands on Orlando Hudson. Rumor has it that he is available, and I think he has a chance to be an AS calibur 2B and to top it off he is young and cheap.

I read a Seattle paper and talked to some Seattle fans, and they say that Seattle plugged the plug on the deal. They aren't going to give up Soriano. He is one of the top young pitchers in the game. I really think a Maggs for Garcia, Winn, and Mateo would be a good team. The Sox would address 3 weaknesses with this trade AND save about 3-4M. As far as waiting for him to be non-tendered, a Seattle paper wrote an article saying that other GM's are stupid if they think Seattle is going to non-tender him. Take it for wait it is worth though. I still think that a deal for Garcia is likely.

A deal that I would like to see happen is Garcia, Winn, and Mateo for Maggs. I really think Garcia has a good chance to rebound. Also, I looked at his home/away splits and they aren't as one sided as you would think, so I think him moving away from Safeco won't hurt him. I think Winn would be a nice addition. Seattle would probably given him up to open a spot in the outfield for Maggs and help even the salaries. I think Winn would look good in the leadoff spot for the Sox. He has quietly put up some solid numbers the past 2 years: .290+ BA, 35+ 2B, 10+ HR, 75+ RBI, 20+ SB, .770+ OPS(including a .345+ OBP). Mateo would be a young arm that the Sox could put in the pen and possible groom as a future closer or put him in the rotation. He quietly put together a great year last year: 4-0 85.2 IP 69 H 13 BB 71 K .96 WHIP 3.15 ERA. The Sox could then put a package together for Orlando Hudson from Toronto(who is reported on the market). The Sox would probably have to give up either Rauch or Diaz and possible another marginal prospect to get him, but it would be well worth it. Hudson is young, cheap, and very talented. Finally, the Sox somehow get the Mets to bite on the Koch for Weathers deal. maybe throw in a marginal prospect if you have too. Do these 3 things and you have yourself a pretty talented team that fits the financial constraints. CF - Winn 2B - Hudson LF - Lee DH - Thomas 1B - Konerko SS - Valentin 3B - Crede RF - Rowand(Reed or Borchard if he struggles) C - Olivo LH - Buehrle RH - Loiaza RH - Garcia RH - Garland LH/RH - Schoeneweis or Rauch/Diaz(the one not included in the Hudson deal) or Mateo LH - Marte RH - Mateo RH - Weathers LH - Wunsch RH - Wright RH - Ginter or Rauch/Diaz(the one not included in the Hudson deal) IF/CF - Harris IF - Uribe C - Alomar 1B/OF - Gload Utl. - Other Thats a pretty decent team with all things considered. Its also a very young team with only 6 players on the wrong side of 30. This is just a possibility.

From what I have heard/know about the minors/gotten from M's fans, is that they might not part with Blackley or Nagoette either. Then again their fans don't have much say in which prospects are untouchable. The good news is that the M's have a pretty talented minor league system with a lot of prospects that address the Sox needs. One guy I wouldn't mind getting, assuming he is completely healthy, is Chris Snelling. We will have to wait and see though. Its just a rumor out of Seattle.

Unfortunately you don't have much say in the matter if the deal goes through. It could be a good deal depending on who the prospects are. It would also address the fact that the Sox have to cut about 5-7M from their current payroll. Its just a rumor so don't get your panties in a bunch just yet. Lets find out if it goes through and what players are involved before you start calling for peoples heads.

I doubt that the M's will give up Soriano. The kid is a future ace and one of the reasons that they are thinking about trading Garcia is to open a spot in the starting rotation for him. The M's do have a pretty good minor league system though with some prospects that might interest the Sox. I agree with you soxbadger, one of the reasons why there hasn't been a lot of trades is because GM's are waiting for some of the big name FA to land and when the smoke clears there will be teams that missed out and will look for trades to fill their holes. My guess is that the Sox get one of the three pitchers that you mention. If I had a choice, I would want them to get Washburn, Garcia, and Perez in that order. I have always been a fan of Guillen and would love to see him in a Sox uniform, especially if they move Valentin. I am also coming around on the idea of trading for Izturis.

This is untrue. Multiple reports have said that the Braves are cutting payroll this year. Why do you think that they have let Maddux, Sheffield, and Lopez go? Because they don't need them? You answered your own question in a round about way. The fact that the Braves aren't keeping Maddux, Sheffield, and Lopez should be evidence enough that they are cutting payroll if the reports aren't enough evidence for you. Why not keep Sheffield long-term for about 12-13M/yr instead of give up some good prospects for 1 year of Maggs at 14M? They didn't even offer Sheffield arbitration because they were affraid that the Yankees deal might fall through and he would accept the arbitration offer. You need to look at things from the perspective of the other team as well. It will give you a much better understanding of the game and possible trades. The overall fact is that the Braves are cutting payroll this year and probably wouldn't have taken on all of Maggs 14M contract.

that a Garcia and either prospects or money for Maggs deal might go down in the very near future. They also said that if the M's miss out on Tejada they might be interested in Valentin. I was talking to some Seattle fans and they said the radio station, called Komo am 1000, is usually a pretty reliable source. Its just a rumor, so don't assume that it is a done deal, but I have heard a lot of speculation that the Sox are really after Garcia and this is just another source from the other side confirming this rumor. This deal would make sense for both sides, so I think it is a fairly realistic rumor, but we will have to wait and see.

Don't put words into my mouth. I never said that a similar deal might have been offered to the Sox, but at this point we will never know. If a deal involving Wainwright(and maybe others) for Lee was offered, than I think KW would be stupid not to take it, but it is a moot point right now.

I don't understand why you think they would get more if they waited. Why would a team give up more for a player when they are going to only have him for 1/3rd of the season opposed to a full year? If you look at the history of trade deadline deals, than you will notice that they don't net more trade value. Furthermore, there was a very interesting article on ESPN that showed that very few of the prospects traded at the deadline ever amount to anything(that could probably be said about most trades involving prospects though). So why not trade Maggs for a package of Garcia, Winn/Guillen, and maybe a prospect? That will probably be a better deal then any offer the Sox will get come the trade deadline, and it helps the Sox fill a couple of holes while saving some money. Furthermore, I calculated the payroll as of right now(adding in the likely amount that players would get for arbitration) and came up with a current payroll of roughly 63-65M. Thats about 5-7M over the likely payroll for 2004, so the fact remains that the Sox might not have the option of keeping Maggs until the trade deadline next season.

A trade that might be interesting would be Maggs to Seattle for Garcia, either Winn/Guillen, and a prospect. I think that is a relatively fair deal for both sides and addresses both teams weaknesses by trading from their strengths. The M's do this trade because they get a big bat in the middle of the order and do it while only adding 3-4M to their payroll. They can afford to lose Garcia since they have an ace in the waiting, Soriano, ready to take his spot in the rotation. They can also afford to give up either Winn or Guillen, and it would help balance the salaries. They still might have enough money to stay in the Tejada sweepstakes as well. The Sox do this trade because it gives them a solid starting pitcher who has shown the ability to be a front of the rotation starter. They also get a CF/2B that can leadoff for them. They cut about 3-4M off the payroll, and they also get a good prospect. I think it could work, and reports say that the Sox have really looked hard at Garcia over the past week. Another possibility is Baltimore. A trade of Maggs for Gibbons and 1 of the following Hairston/Mora/Roberts would also be interesting. This would only become a possibility if Baltimore loses out on the Guerrero sweepstakes. The Sox would get Gibbons, who I think is prime for a breakout year after looking at his minor league numbers, to replace Maggs and give them a lefty bat, and they get a 2B who can leadoff(my guess is they would be most willing to give up Hairston). The key is that the Sox would save about 10-12M, which is one of the reasons why Baltimore might not be willing to do the trade, and with that money the Sox can go and get Ponson for about 7M/yr and still save 3-5M. Another possibility is Anaheim. A trade of Maggs for Washburn and MAYBE Kennedy would be nice. Washburn straight up would give the Sox a good starter and about 10M to address the other weaknesses(2B, replacement for Maggs, RP), and getting Kennedy as part of the deal would address one of those weaknesses while still giving the Sox around 7M to address the other two problems. Unfortunately, I think the Sox have little choice but to deal Maggs. A mid-small payroll team can't afford to have over 20% of the total payroll taken by one player. Maggs would probably also net the Sox something decent in return, the more salary they take on to balance the more they get talent wise. There are a couple of possibilities above that would help the Sox. Lets hope KW takes his time, evaluates his situation, and makes a few smart moves(hopefully one of the above is one of them). In regards to the Atlanta-St Loius trade. I was thinking about how the Sox could have probably gotten a similar package from the Braves for Lee, I doubt the Braves would take almost all of Maggs salary on by offering a similar package. Lee and Drew are very similar. I would have loved to see the Sox get their hands on Wainwright, because from what I have seen/heard about him, he has a chance to be a true ace in the future. Oh well, I guess we will have to wait impatiently for the Sox to make a move.

I am going to have to respectfully disagree. If you read carefully, than you will see that I say SOME FINANCIAL FLEXIBILITY/RELIEF. Now that doesn't nessarily mean that the Sox are going to get top young players AND save 12-13M. For example, one possibility might be Garcia and prospects for Maggs. In this example, the Sox would address one of their major weaknesses and save about 6-7M depending on how much Garcia gets through arbitration. That means that they would fullfil the two needs(fill hole and free money). If you follow any of the rumors floating around, you will notice that most include a big salary player that addresses a weakness, however, the Sox would still save a big chunk of change. Whether you didn't read/understand my post or you haven't been following the latest rumors/news it is pretty clear that trading Maggs will probably fill both needs, so you really shouldn't say stuff like, trading him won't address both needs, when that is far from certain/likely.

I am not mad that it got removed...in fact thats what I expected to happen...but I do think you overracted a tad by questioning my credibility as well as the sights over a joke that was posted solely to easy some of the tension of the slow moving offseason. I did play D2 football at Bryant College in Rhode Island for 2 years before I transfered to the University of Arizona. Unfortunately I had to accept the reality that I just wasn't good enough to play big time D1 ball(as terrible as the U of A football team is). Everyone is getting ready for the D2 championship game??? I didn't know that D2 football was that big of a topic. To be honest with you I really haven't followed the D2 level besides a few calls to some of my old teammates asking how the season went.

You need a sense of humor old man...There is no better way to easy the tension then a little joke, and it should be taken as nothing more, but once again you have managed to blow things out of proportion. Losing lots of respect??? Whatever makes you sleep better at night old man? Most people have the common sense to comprehend it for what it is, a joke. Soxtalk losing credibility??? Once again most people understand that it is just a joke to easy tense, and people aren't going to judge the site as a whole by a joke. You are clearly blowing this out of proportion and taking this stuff way to seriously. Please tell me you have more to your life then monitoring a message board? It was a joke and nothing more, but your response was a clear example of a person that is too tense and impatient at this time. You need to find a sense of humor buddy.

These guys told us a whole lot of nothing. Its very obvious that the Sox have to make a big move, so that is nothing new. I think the guy that has to go is Maggs. I love Maggs, but he is the only player that addresses both needs. 1) Give the Sox some financial relief/flexibility. 2) The Sox can get something decent in return that will help them now and address a weakness. We will have to wait and see though.

I couldn't agree more. I have been mentioning Orlando Hudson for about a month now. Apparently the Jays are shopping him for young pitching.

Perez, Izturis, and Mota for Konerko and Valentin would be a dream come true. To bad there is no chance that the Dodgers do such a deal. Perez, Lo Doca, and Hanrahan for Konerko and Maggs would be interesting, but I would have to say no. Plus - Sox save about 14M(give or take a million). Some of that could be spent to find a difference making FA. - The Sox get a very good catcher - The Sox get a decent middle/bottom of the rotation starter - The Sox get a decent pitching prospect Negatives - The Sox really don't address any of the major weaknesses(top of the rotation starter, right handed reliever, middle infielder/top of the order hitter) - Lo Doca at 31 has seen his numbers decrease the last 2 years - Perez scares me with his inconsistancy and poor away stats - Hanrahan is a decent prospect, but projects to be a middle of the rotation starter AT BEST This trade does free money, but doesn't address major weaknesses, so I would say no.

I really like Diaz and think he should be given a good chance to make this club out of ST. He has above average stuff, the question is his stamina and health. Its nice to see that Munoz is pitching well. He is still very young and has a chance to be a very good reliever in the majors. If you take out his 1st week last year he put together a decent year. Its good to see Gload tearing it up. I have a feeling that Daubach's old job is his to lose come ST. Who knows, maybe he will get a chance to start if the Sox get rid of Konerko and go cheap.

"It appears that Davie was a better recruiter than Willingham has been. This year there recruiting class is autrotious. And one of the best recruits of last years class, (olsen) is transferring." I believe that is Olsen the QB, and not Olsen the TE that was a top 10 recruit. I could be wrong, but I haven't heard anything about the younger brother transfering. If he does it wouldn't be a big lose. The one position that they have recruited well is TE. Fassano appears to be a future star at TE, so it wouldn't be a huge lose. "I thought Tyrone would be sucessful, but the thing that has me is the fact that this years recruiting class (His group) isn't even ranked in the Top 25 and they will barely get in the top 50." Your not understanding that the recruiting season has just begun. Most of the top recruits haven't committed yet. You have to wait until you claim that ND doesn't have a top 25 recruiting class. I get multiple inside recruiting sources, and ND are currently favorites for many of the top 100 prospects left on the board, and could possible even sneak into the top 10 overall recruiting, so please wait until the recruiting season is over before you make assumptions that simple aren't true. "I'm sorry, but this years team, although they played a tough schedule, didn't show improvement and it took Tyrone so long before he finally started to make Julius the feature back. Two years ago they drastically over-achieved, this year they under-achieved a bit. The problem was I didn't see improvement. This team didn't get better as the season went on and it showed when they got their asses handed to them by a crappy Syracuse team. " When you have a young team you are going to struggle some and go throught some growing pains. ND was one of the youngest teams in the college game, playing one of the toughest schedules in the country. You put those two things together and you are going to have a long season. I wish I had the article that talked about how ND actually showed more this season, and for the most part had similar stats. It was very well written and goes into great detail and gives a different perspective to view things from. Give Ty a couple more years before you start drawing conclusions about him as a coach and recruiter.

Which is probably less then what JuanGone wants/will get.

I would rather have the Sox go after Cameron instead of JuanGone. Cameron would probably cost less money, is younger, is SIGNIFICANTLY better defensively, is SIGNIFICANTLY faster, and isn't much worse offensively(especially when you consider that JuanGone played in one of the best hitters parks and Cameron played in one of the best pitchers parks). I think Cameron would be a much better investment at this point, if the Sox are looking a cheaper option, and if Maggs is traded.

Wow, if this is the case, than Colorado is in a worse state then the Sox. I am sure that they will love Miles no walk, no speed, questionable bat at the top of the order. To top it off they will have to put up with his terrible defense too. It won't take them long to realize that Miles is a utility infielder at best.

I have to disagree with your idea of firing Ty. You have to give a coach some time and allow him to install his systems and type of players/recruits. It turned out that last years fluke season hurt Ty by putting unachievable expectations on this years team. It was easy to see, even as a true Irish fan with some bias, that last year was a fluke and Notre Dame could have easily been a .500 team. Last year they got the breaks and this year they haven't. Furthermore, they played arguable the hardest schedule in the nation. They played 4 games against teams that finished in the top 15, and 3 more against teams that are going to Bowl games. Ty had a choice this year, he could have installed a system that fit his talent(ie an option/power running system) or continue to build on his westcoast offense while going through some struggles but benefiting the school in the long-run. There was a great article in either the sportingnews or sportsillustrated that talked about how this Irish team proved more and will be better off in the future. Furthermore, he showed that the stats were almost identical from last year to help show that last years team was a fluke and that this years team really hasn't regressed. The skill level of this team has improved and youngsters that will play an important role in future are gaining valuable experience. Quinn - Has struggled some, but has the skills to really develop into a perfect QB to run this westcoast offense. He also gained valuable experience. Stovall and McKnight - These guys are two of the most talented(skills wise) receivers in the game and will play an important role in the westcoast offense over the next couple of years. Fassano - This guy has really impressed me. He is a receiver in a TE's body and is going to play a big role the next couple of years. Grant - Has taken a back seat to Jones, but will be the featured back next year. He showed last year that he has the skills to be the top back. O-line - 5 new starters are going to make any team vulnerable up front. The O-line has really taken some steps forward and gained invaluable experience, including the true freshman Harris who is going to be very good a couple of years from now. Tuck - One of the top pure pass rushers in the college game is going to be back next year, and can probably be counted on for another double digit sack year. Abiamiri - This guy might be one of the most impressive freshman I have ever seen. He only started starting about 3-4 weeks ago, but has really made his pressence known. He always seems to be in the backfield, and is showing why some felt he was one of the top 10 recruits in the country. Linebackers - 2 of the 3 starters will be back, and they should also get Goolsby back. Defensive Backfield - 3 of the 4 ending starters should be back, and they have good depth at this postion. Not to mention a couple of young players from the top 5 recruiting class of last year. As you can see this team gained valuable experience and should be drasticly better next year, so please show some patience and realize that Ty is a good coach. This years recruiting class has been a little disappointing so far, however, part of the reason is that Notre Dame(Ty) usually don't sign a lot of players early like some of the other top schools. They are still a finalistist for many of the top recruits still left on the board including Brohm(#2 overall), Toal, Temple among others, so be patient before you declare something that could turn out to be false(that ND won't have a top 25 recruiting class). Finally, you have to realize that ND is no longer a consistant national power. Sure they have the name and tradition to fall back on, but they are not a consistant championship contending school any more. Some people have failed to realize this simple fact. It use to be that all the top players went to ND(and a few other schools like Alabama and Michigan), but now there is such parity and other schools have things that recruits want(weather, close to home, ability to develop pro players, ect.) so they are going to different schools. The fact is that there are few dominant schools any more, and ND isn't one of those few. That doesn't mean that they can't get back to that level, but it will take more then 1 year and some patience. I think Ty is the right guy to lead this school, and while ND might not ever be that dominanting team again, they could, this some great recruiting classes and a little luck, win a national championship in the future.