mmmmmbeeer

In person, I think #5 just grabs me more than any of the other jerseys. Not so much the uniform, per se, but just as a jersey you see at games or what have you.

Thanks for the link. Went back and watched and was admittedly encouraged. Pedro didn't seem nervous, spoke convincingly of how he wants to run things, wasn't shy about his embrace of modern baseball and allowing analytics to drive games. Rick was his typical evasive self, including when it seemed Pedro wanted to mention changes in regards to player health they're making to "sports m...." before Rick cut him off. Considering the last time we had one of these press conferences I was simultaneously enraged and confused, it didn't take much for this to get me excited. That said, I think this guy could be more than "at least he's not Tony".

I don't know, man....Herm Schneider kept us one of the healthiest team in baseball on a pretty consistent basis. A guy who probably didn't pay much attention to the all the new science but spent 40 years honing his craft by learning which stretches were best, treatment effectiveness, etc. Every team is going to have injuries, that's unavoidable, but Herm's record is amazing. Especially when everyone and their brother were tearing their UCLs....Sox had limited instances under Hermie.

Were you in a Chicagoland hospital a few months back by any chance, Lip, sharing all of this with a hospital employee? 😁 There are some things that just don't make sense to me, which could be a matter of folks injecting their own narratives into what they tell you. For instance, you've got one source saying Moncada spent all his time at Jose's locker and another source saying Moncada has his money and doesn't care about results any longer. Unless we're to believe that Jose, clearly an influential person to Yo and a clubhouse leader, let "his guy" just perform poorly and not say anything to him about his performance, these two sources' stories just don't jibe, imo. Regardless, interesting insight and really punctuates just how rudderless of a ship this franchise is. Whomever owns this team next, I sure hope they do a full housecleaning.

I don't think "lying" is appropriate...more like "find out if he was overruled...again".

I've never gotten the impression Thome is an especially intelligent guy. It follows he would have little to no reliance on data helping to steer his managerial decisions; he would be another "gut" manager. Of all the names we've heard, some much more unimpressive than others, Jim Thome shouldn't just be at the bottom of the list, he shouldn't even be on the list.

That's not an excuse. When that contract was negotiated, the Sox had enormous leverage to include worker compensation requirements.

I get trying to make each season profitable but, let's be honest, with few exceptions we see the biggest gains in franchise value through simple asset appreciation. Reinsdorf and company bought this team for $20M....it's now worth (conservatively) $2billion. And they want to stick it to the fans after a b.s. season? They want to whine about payroll? Here's a helpful hint to ol' Jerr...you're about to die soon. If you want this team to climb in value on your way out the door, get to spending and improve your product. Build the fanbase, increase the TV deals, sell more STs. Dicking over fans while your initial investment has grown nearly 10,000% over the past 40 years is just disgusting, especially given the lack of competitive seasons this franchise has mustered over the decades under Reinsdorf.

Expectations suck so much because they tend to draw you in, instill empty confidence, and always leave you believing things will eventually turnaround. No matter how frustrated I became throughout the season, I just couldn't resist watching or tuning in to listen to games...only to be left asking myself why I chose to subject myself to more misery, anger, and frustration. I just couldn't shake off the expectations that not only the org set for themselves, but that I set based on this roster and previous performance.....Charlie Brown and the football situation. Alas, next spring I'll fall right back into the same trap. I'll blame the weather for underperformance. Or maybe it's an umpires fault. Or maybe I'll believe someone is playing hurt. No matter the cause, I'm a White Sox fan and therefore a masochist. Maybe things will go our way next season? I know I'll be watching/listening to find out!

Why would this hypothetical team be looking for a new manager? I mean, you're describing a world class, winning org.

How much of a role do you think our managerial situation had to do with not only the contracts we DID sign (trade for) but our lack of FAs coming to Chicago? Do you think free agents were lining up to play for TLR...a big selling point for the FO?

If I told you last January you could have AJ Pollock or Mark Canha for the same money, who would you have chosen? I appreciate the reply and I agree he could've done better...every GM can do better. I just don't think the pitchforks should be out.

The farm is empty, prospects have been excruciatingly expensive in the trade market, and teams aren't handing out 25-28yo good players for peanuts. Free agency dollars are determined by JR, a man who has NEVER paid to sign a player to a $100M+ contract. So what's he to do? Find value. To say the RP market has been the best value position in baseball the last 5-10 years isn't an incorrect statement....good bang for your buck as the game evolves to become so RP reliant. Royals and Cleveland both rode extraordinary bullpens to the World Series within the last decade. Be it Robertson, Herrera, Liam, Graveman, Kimbrel, etc., they weren't necessarily "bad" moves if those guys pitched to their career norms. The Kelly signing was an egregious overpay but you can't convince me that wasn't a TLR signing. Just seems we b**** and moan about all these players that Rick doesn't get, the fact he signs older veterans, etc., with absolutely zero thought given to why he's forced to do those things. You don't think he wanted to bring Schwarber in this past offseason? Of course he did....but the money wasn't there.

Bye, Jose. He gawn. For as great as Rick is at saying nothing, he definitely (unintentionally) showed his cards when the subject of Jose came up.

Fathom. To watch his bad takes implemented on a baseball diamond would be...chef's kiss.