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QUOTE (raBBit @ Feb 1, 2014 -> 10:58 AM) Am I the only one who absolutely loves this signing more and more everyday? I am also excited about him. Something clicked for him when he got to KC. Let's hope he's back to that level, and gets a boost from Coop's tutelage. Could be the bargain of the offseason.

QUOTE (Chilihead90 @ Jan 31, 2014 -> 05:13 PM) Scott Feldman signing all over again. It's a strategy I wish this organization would employ. They turned Feldman in to Jake Arrieta, Pedro Strop, and international bonus $$$. You need to look at the totality of the flipping process they've employed. They missed on a lot and spent a lot of money. And it only works if you DON'T have 5 guys that you want/need to give MLB innings to. With Paulino apparently healthy, we definitely do. In a situation where you might be forced to start an Axelrod-level type (Grimm, Raley, Rusin, Hendricks, ?), it makes a lot more sense for player and team. Would rather get another look at Rienzo when we need a 6th.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Feb 1, 2014 -> 11:47 AM) Agreed but if he hits very well and fields like last year, he should shift to DH or at least in part for 2015. This pretty much sums it up for me. So much potentially coming to a head this season, and so many new, at-a-minimum intriguing players, the anticipation for the season is killing me. April-May alone could tell us a lot about the near future potential, in the majors as well as minors.

September 18, 2013. John Danks ends his season with a career 4.20 ERA. Whoa dude.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 06:18 PM) He is already on the 40 man roster. Well there you are. Keeping him on the 25 man, however, is kind of a "punt" for this season, imo, and I don't think that's the org's style, be it under KW or RH. So what do you think the Nats will want in trade?

QUOTE (GreenSox @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 01:47 PM) Thanks for the insight. Sounds like Iglesias, except that .200 in A ball might translate to .100 in the majors if he can't develop the bat. Now if they do work out a trade for Nieto, they'll still have to keep him on the 40 man after the season so that he doesn't get Rule fived from them, right? I hope this is the scenario. Keeping him on the 40 man isn't too much of a chore with doorstops like Nestor and Heath still in tow.

QUOTE (SCCWS @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 10:48 AM) Teams don't usually make a bunch of moves during spring training. You may see players released or traded for cash but I don't think Hahn will dump these guys. My guess is you will see one traded for catching and 2 will be kept going into season. I see them keeping ADA til midseason, barring an injury related need that arises for a team in ST. I also think that Gilaspinger's fate may depend on an evaluation of Davidson around mid-March - if he's killing it in ST, for instance, and appears nothing but ready, the team would look rather Pennywise in bringing Kepp north in his stead. Fans, like me, would be plenty ticked.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 08:59 AM) Sorry, that Ross Gload for Andy Wilkins. Dan Black seems more like Jack Cust (without the power) or Daric Barton (without the defense). Also, I haven't been this excited for Jared Mitchell since the year after he was drafted. Not that I necessarily buy what he did in the AFL, but I'm hoping that last year was sort of an eye opening experience for him and that a switch was flipped. Frankly, if he can even put up De Aza's numbers at the MLB level, it would be an incredible victory for the Sox at this point. Would love to see JMitch as 4th OF in 2015. Last chance, as you say.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jan 30, 2014 -> 10:24 AM) No. Possible injury did not matter to Law. It appears from his comments below, the stuff is doubted. I don’t love the arm action, but this idea that arm action guarantees injury has to die. It’s all probability, and there have been pitchers with subpar mechanics who’ve pitched in the majors for several years before getting hurt, as well as plenty of pitchers with "clean" arm actions who got hurt anyway. Back to Sale, I’m more concerned that he’s a sidearming lefty without much of a breaking ball. If you knew nothing about him but that one sentence, what would you say he was in the big leagues? In that same analysis, he rated Sale's slider as a '40' on his MLB Draft Grading Scale, with a projected future rating of '45'. A 40 on that scale translates to "Well below-average ability". A 45 is still below average and translates to "11th/12th men on a pitching staff". This may be the single stupidest thing said by any pundit, ever. Maybe he saw him on a bad day, lol. Sale's slider is quickly headed to GOAT territory, and dominates righties as well as lefties. http://wapc.mlb.com/play?content_id=29663395 Glad he also dislikes the Dane, whereas Parks loves him. Law's still playing catchup with his ego.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Jan 29, 2014 -> 03:14 PM) This is a strange argument. Shipley was a great value at 15 and probably a top 10 player in that draft. Crawford is more refined than Anderson on both sides of the ball as a younger player (and I do understand Anderson's background). Sure a lot of things can happen moving forward from here, but I'd prefer either of those players over Anderson. At this point, if you argue otherwise you're just succumbing to your team's bias. Pro-ball sample sizs for the '13 draftees is so small that most pundits are merely going with their earlier scouting positons. Can't even trade them yet. Dramatic changes are commonplace, especially, from first time rankings.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Jan 29, 2014 -> 02:41 PM) It sucks looking at Law's list and seeing guys that we were hoping would fall to us ranked so much better than Anderson. Obviously there's nothing you can do about it but going into the Arizona's pick there was nearly a unanimous belief that we should take Shipley and if not Shipley, JP Crawford. Of course those were the two picks before us. Shipley - #25 JP Crawford - #46 Anderson - #97 Again, nothing you can do but it still sucks. Nah, it's pretty damn meaningless. None of these guys are going to be traded anytime soon, so the ranking next year is the 1st that will "matter". Anderson has a high ceiling, and could move up significantly this season, or not.

QUOTE (PolishPrince34 @ Jan 28, 2014 -> 09:16 AM) Keith Law just ranked White Sox 27th . Shocked by how low he had us. I thought we would be closer to 20. FKL

QUOTE (ScottyDo @ Jan 28, 2014 -> 09:39 AM) I think he's saying that, in the case that we trade for him instead of sending him back, we then put him in AA instead of throwing him onto the 25-man Yep. I mean, he could blow them away in ST, to the point of earning the spot on the 25 man, but that would be surprising to me. And when the other guy is FlowGley, it's not like we'll be able to hide him. He'll have to play a lot - and that might not be the best thing for the team/young pitching staff, or for the kid's development.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 28, 2014 -> 07:17 AM) (I still think this is a terrible idea) Well, I expect him to be traded, but it may not be before the start of the season. Actually expect it to be midseason, now. He's insurance for Eaton, and he'll have a lot of late game action in LF as D replacement for Tank, on days he doesn't start.

QUOTE (lasttriptotulsa @ Jan 28, 2014 -> 05:38 AM) If you're talking a Viciedo vs lefty, De Aza vs righty platoon in left field, you're only giving Viciedo around 200 PAs. That would be a horrible idea and basically admitting that he is not going to amount to anything. Not to mention the fact that Viciedo hit righties better last year. Yeah, there won't be a LF platoon, but ADA could backup all the OF positions and still get a fair amount of AB's.

I think they evaluate Nieto during ST, then trade for him, or don't depending on what they see. Should be interesting how it plays out.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Jan 27, 2014 -> 08:28 AM) More importantly Reetz played football in HS. Don't send KW to scout him.

QUOTE (lasttriptotulsa @ Jan 27, 2014 -> 11:45 AM) I have to imagine that they're trying to unload Keppinger. He really doesn't have a place on this team. I mean, yea he plays all over the infield, but he has no speed and with a short bench I want guys that can run. With either Konerko or Dunn available every game, we really don't need the bench guys to be pinch hitters either. Basically the way this team is constructed I would much rather have my backup IF be light hitting, fast and great on defense vs solid hitting, slow and average on defense. All of this. Well said. How much cheapness will be displayed in chasing the $8.5m, for the slightest return? I hope very little.

QUOTE (Jose Abreu @ Jan 27, 2014 -> 10:30 AM) Davidson is ready. He's been tearing up the minors and got some MLB experience last year. I hope so. Opening Day lineup - not my choice, but what I think we'll see: 1. Eaton 2. Ramirez 3. Abreu 4. Dunn - since we're facing a righty from the Twinks - I worry about him being the protection for Abreu, maybe flip them 5. Garcia 6. Viciedo 7. Unk. Lefty or Switch C - very wishful here 8. Davidson 9. Beckham - would like to see him flipped with Ramirez if he's hitting well, increase trade value from a current level of nuthin' Bench: Leury - best accommodation of 2 DH crunch as long as he hits a little, Kepp more likely if we're not prepared to eat most of $8.5M owed, Gillaspie likely gone regardless, if Davidson comes North. DeAza - if not traded, JorDanks, if Backup/Platoon C - Would like to see Phegley hitting mostly lefties, 40-50 games PK14 SP: Sale Q EJohnson Danks - technically the 3, but flipped w/ EJohnson to break up lefties Paulino - Could see him flipped w/EJohnson - ST determination, may depend on health Pen (much determined by ST) early prediction: Jones CL Lindy - Will battle with Beli for 8th inning role, splitting set-up with Downs Downs - Will be 8th inning guy, depending on matchups Belisario Webb - competition from Petricka? Veal - loogy - hope there's decent ST competition here Rienzo - longman/spot starter/5th starter if Paulino not ready

QUOTE (SoxAce @ Jan 27, 2014 -> 09:43 AM) I highly doubt he does, unless he tears the cover off the ball in ST. Kid is still a bit raw (although the power is very real). He'll be here before the end of the season though. Even Hahn spoke about him likely headed to AAA to start, which I believe is the right move for his development (unless, like I said, he just murders the ball in ST). Let him handle the tougher IL. Ehh, maybe, I wonder. This could just be "cover" for his actual desperation in trading both Kepp and Gillaspie. If the Sox think Davidson is ready, and that call is likely made during ST, Kepp and/or Conor will need to go.

A ranking of the signability/guestimated costs for the top draftees, especially the pitchers, would be cool. If anyone here has that expertise, much appreciated.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Jan 25, 2014 -> 12:09 PM) Agree that this would be a bad idea. Disappointing that they are even considering it. We agree! But, seriously, I wonder if, since it's supposedly such a deep class, that they like a few guys they figure to be available in Round 2 as much as the guys they could pick at 3. Doubt it, but maybe. Still, don't care for it. #3 pick is rare, god willing, and we shouldn't pass up a chance to get someone who could dominate in a few years.

QUOTE (steveno89 @ Jan 24, 2014 -> 07:39 AM) Ok take Danks out of the projected starting rotation, it was just an example. But outside of Johnson, what starting pitching prospects do we have that get you at all excited? I like Danish, but still feel his sidearm action and quick release still project better as a reliever long term. Beck hasn't shown the upside to be anything more than a #4 or 5 starter at best in the show. Yes, he did look much better after getting promoted to AA, but this incredibly low strikeout rate at A ball has me concerned. He needs to show solid improvement this year to be considered legitimate in my eyes. Outside of these two, who in our system even projects to make the major leagues as a starting pitcher, let alone excel? While I'd be happy to draft Turner, this shows how much we need to stock up on quality arms in the farm system. I like Keaton McKinney later in the draft, he has a solid frame, the best changeup of all HS pitchers and great control. Keep your eyes on Olacio, Ortiz, and Montas, possibly Jaye, Lopez (when he returns), and potentially several others. Beck could make a significant move forward this year. The first few months of the MiLB season should tell us a lot. By that time, you'll LOOOVVVE Danish, imo. I'm also confident that either our first or 2nd pick in this year's draft will be a nice addition to this list.

QUOTE (beautox @ Jan 24, 2014 -> 06:08 PM) I disagree Robin did a great job managing leverage in our bullpen last year nearly as good as the red sox link Well, that article concluded that there was little correlation, if any, between leverage matching and performance, so not sure of your point. BoSox struggled thru Hanrahan and Bailey before giving Koji the job he should have had from day one, so not seeing any brilliance there either.

Bargain shopping, if anything.