Kenny Hates Prospects

I want to keep Carrasco in the pen too, but if the Sox are removing minor league starters from the pool of options, the choice between Carrasco and Contreras is a no-brainer. Let's see, start a MLB pitcher or extend batting practice? Yeah, will have to go with Carrasco. We already knew DJ would be pitching the moment we sent Jose to the mound so it's not like we could have saved DJ for work tomorrow or whatever. It wouldn't have mattered who we started because we faced Cy Mitre and got shut down. But it's more of a confidence issue IMO. How do you as a manager expect to inspire confidence in your team when you run Jose f***ing Contreras out to start a game? That's basically forfeiting. No wonder the offense was asleep. They had no reason to bother getting out of bed today as it was.

QUOTE (danman31 @ Aug 29, 2009 -> 06:18 PM) He's not a plus positional prospect. If he is supposed to be an average 1B or solid 1B, he's not plus. So if he's supposed to be a league average everyday 1B in the Major Leagues then he's basically a run of the mill 1B prospect? Aren't your average run of the mill 1B prospect tweeners and AAAA players? Chris Carter of the Red Sox is your average 1B prospect, nothing special. Brandon Allen is above that. I believe Brandon Allen also has a ceiling above that of an average MLB 1B. Here's a comparison: Brandon Allen / Chris Carter Age 23 / 22 Level AA (62G) AAA (53G) / AA (125G) AAA (3G) PA 502 / 607 AVG .298 / .333 OBP .373 / .430 SLG .503 / .567 PA/BB 10 /7.4 PA/K 5.9 / 4.93 So let's look at these numbers. First off, people talk about Allen's numbers in the PCL being inflated. Okay, but so are Carter's numbers in Midland the Texas League, and Carter played practically his whole season there while Allen spent more than half his season in Birmingham in the Southern League before moving on to face tougher competition in AAA and finally MLB. So the power numbers on the surface favor Carter but park and league play big factors in that and the power gap isn't nearly as large as it appears. The big difference between the two are the BB rate and K rate. Allen K's just less than every 6 PA against higher level competition while Carter just less than every 5 PA. Carter walks a lot more - every 7.4 PA - while Allen walks once every 10 PA. If you take out that 61 PA stretch Allen had in Charlotte where he K'd 13 times and didn't walk even once the average becomes one walk every 8.82 PA which, when you look at his numbers individually, is right where he is normally at. So Carter can be expected to walk more than Allen, but not a whole lot more, and it's a lot closer than people realize. Allen's lower K rate while adjusting to higher competition is FAR more indicative of a good prospect than walk rate IMO because which skill is going to better translate in the Majors? Contact? Or the walk numbers? Nobody is going to pitch around either of these guys in the Majors until they've proven themselves, so the contact is going to be more important as they break into the Majors. Of course if you also factor out that short stint in Charlotte where Allen was adjusting, his K rate lowers even further to one K per every 6.1 PA. The bottom line is that Carter and Allen are very similar prospects with Allen the better contact guy and Carter with more walks. Both have lots of power and are young, with Allen being one year older and about one year in development ahead exactly. ANYONE who would consider Chris Carter an average 1B prospect is clueless. Calling Allen the same is just as much so. Edit: BTW Allen has 21 HR between AA/AAA/MLB while Carter has 24 between AA/AAA in 80 more PA. I guess that means he doesn't have power... BTW did anyone watch his first MLB home run? How he took an outside fastball about 2-3" off the plate and pulled it with little effort about 435 feet into RCF in San Francisco? Man, just call this guy Ryan Sweeney, he must have no pop whatsoever.

QUOTE (SoxFan562004 @ Aug 28, 2009 -> 09:42 AM) Dana sums up many of my feelings on Woman's MMA. The top fighters in the lower weights to UFC might just end up being a business decision because those guys are marketable and the current WEC model doesn't lend itself to them getting paid enough. I think they are at risk of losing those guys to Strikeforce and/or Japan if they don't pay them more, and the easiest way to do that is to bring the top guys into the UFC. Great point, however Reed Harris keeps saying that it is like 100% definite that the WEC is going to Mexico, and if they're going to do that, Torres HAS to be on that card, along with probably one of the Brazilian guys (probably Aldo) and at least one big-name American like Faber or Brown. Leonard Garcia would be a lock too. Maybe they'll go to Mexico first and then shift the big names over. Or, maybe they instead have the UFC go over there and showcase Torres in the main event. Actually, a Torres-Bowles rematch in a co-main along with Velasquez-Lesnar/Carwin would be a huge show down there. But either way I definitely think they're going to Mexico soon after the ratings they've been getting down there. I think Dana said they ran a recap show that was basically like the Mexican version of Unleashed and it outperformed the country's soccer team in the ratings.

Lots of interesting fights on this card and I don't know who to pick in a few of them My picks: Couture decision - think his wrestling is going to be the factor and Nog is going to spend the fight against the fence Jardine decision/KO/TKO - don't think Thiago is going to be able to find him Tuchscherer TKO - GG has really big problems when wrestlers put him on his back Russo decision - Russo I think is from the Chicago area, McCully is solid but I think Russo takes a slugfest Munoz decision - dropping should help him Aurelio decision Herman decision Toss-ups: Rosholt-Leben is really tough. Rosholt has an enormous wrestling advantage and should be able to take it if he goes with his bread and butter, but he thinks he's a striker and that's not going to work against Leben. I'm leaning Rosholt because he really needs a win in the UFC so I don't see him f***ing around here. Nate-Maia - this is really tough too and I don't think we know enough about Maia yet. Can he deal with Nate's quickness and speed and striking skill long enough to get him down? If he does it's probably over ASAP. I can't see this going to a decision at all because I don't see Nate keeping the fight standing for 3 rounds and if Nate is going to win it'll probably have to be a 1st round KO/TKO. Krystof-Vera - Vera has the edge in speed, quickness, and in his leg and body kicks, but Vera also folds in big fights. Krystof should have the edge on the ground and he also has the power. I think if Vera wins it'll be a decision but if it's Krystof he'll finish it. Hague-Dufee, don't know enough about them other than Hague has a ton of work to do

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Aug 29, 2009 -> 04:04 PM) Um you said in the eyes of a lot of people Brandon Allen was already the second coming of Frank Thomas. Also That type of player hopefully wont be starting at 1b for the Sox in the next 5 years, so Allen was a bench player to them. Hence why he is easier to trade. No, I was responding to your first uninformed statement where you were shocked about him being viewed as a plus prospect for his position. I have no idea what you're trying to say in the second portion. Who aside from Paulie was above Allen in the depth chart? Fields? Are Viciedo and Flowers first basemen now?

It would be much easier to live with the play of this team if it was only the young players at new positions making the errors, and if I didn't have to watch Contreras and Linebrink take the mound. One quick question BTW: Does anyone else see parallels between the Cotts start in old Yankee Stadium and the Contreras start this year in the new Yankee Stadium? Going into both games I had the same feelings: the manager had really f***ed up, there were better options, and the game was being forfeit. I wonder if we'll look back on this game as the one where the season pretty much ended.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Aug 29, 2009 -> 03:54 PM) Well if people are thinking Brandon Allen is as good of a prospect as Frank Thomas, I just dont know what to say about that. From what I have seen (obviously limited as i dont see many minor league games) he seemed like a solid 1b spect. Unfortunately 1b is one of the easier positions to fill, so generally unless you feel it is a "special" player they are easier to give up. Frank Thomas was minor league player of the year in his second season in the minors at age 21. he hit 18 home runs, 71 runs batted in, and a league-best 112 walks as a member of the Class-AA Birmingham Barons. (His obp was .487) Im not sure how you can say Allen is comparable. YOU were the one that brought up Frank. No one else did. Just because 1B is an easier position to fill at the MLB level than say a SS doesn't make Allen less of a prospect. That's absurd. Look at how many Casey Kotchmans and Sean Caseys and Scott Hatteburgs and Aubrey Huffs and so forth end up starting for teams. Brandon Allen can be better than any of those guys. It's to be determined of course, but just because the guy isn't Juston Smoak doesn't mean we should deal him for Tony Pena.

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Aug 29, 2009 -> 03:38 PM) I'm assuming I saw Allen play the most of anyone on Soxtalk. I never like seeing prospects traded away, but in this case, it was a bad, bad deal. It is going to backfire on the White Sox. I didn't like seeing Chris Young traded, but I knew his attitude and work ethic wasn't great and that might cost him in the long run. Brandon Allen's upside is unknown, and that may hurt the White Sox in the future. Don't forget about Chris Carter either. Allen seems like one of those guys that kind of fall between the cracks and do a lot better than some think they will but everyone else's eyes are on the pitchers with great stuff but no control or the position players with all kinds of tools who still haven't had it "click" for them (as Hawk would say). Everything I've read or heard about Allen from people who have seen him regularly or been around him say glowing things about him, and not just his attitude and work ethic, but his ability to learn the game of baseball. There's a difference between the type of player who can advance through the system because he has outgrown each level and has enough raw ability to get by and the type of player who advances because he learns the game climbing the ladder. Allen seems like the type that as he moves along he is learning how to give fewer and fewer at bats away.

Clearly Ozzie hasn't had CPR training because his team has been choking on a division about as tough as mashed potatoes for quite a while now and it's almost flatlined. I don't like a lot of Ozzie's in-game decisions and I think he's overrated as a game manager by Sox fans. But I love his attitude and fire most of the time, and those I think are the most important qualities in a manager, so he should stay. But he needs to f***ing blow up on this team and seriously start threatening jobs. The absolute WORST thing he can do is allow this s*** to be acceptable. Link, Nunez, Torres, Harrell, Whisler, etc. are already ON the 40-man roster. It doesn't matter whether they'll do well or not either. The Sox need to start sending messages by demoting players to Charlotte, and that should start with Contreras and Linebrink. Ozzie needs to make it known that jobs aren't safe. Sit Dye for a whole series. Send a f***ing message at least.

QUOTE (Baines3 @ Aug 29, 2009 -> 03:16 PM) Walker has done a poor job as a hitting coach but part of the blame has to go to the hitters. All the blame has to go to the hitters IMO because they are the ones up there. But if Walker's performance is to be measured by the consistency of his offense (or lack thereof) then I don't see how he can get high marks from anyone over the last 4 years. If Walker's performance is ONLY to be measured by his knowledge, attitude, work ethic, and ability to communicate with his players, and if all those things check out with the Sox FO, then fine, but they're going to have an even harder time selling that to fans after this season. And if Walker isn't at fault and it's only the players, then it's Kenny's job to find the right mix.

I used to be on the fence about this, but FIRE GREG WALKER!!! Please, just do it so all the arguing over this can stop. It's not like the Sox would have trouble justifying his dismissal.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Aug 28, 2009 -> 02:32 PM) Now Brandon Allen is a plus positional spect? Eventually hell be the second coming of Frank Thomas. In the eyes of a lot people he was exactly that before the trade, so why would he have lost stock now? Is being productive in the Majors supposed to hurt his case or something? I don't know how many top-100 lists he made before the season, but he made the Project Prospect list for sure because I was just looking at that the other day. So if you think he was never more than some mediocre prospect, then that's fine, but there are others who pay a lot more attention to prospects around baseball than you do who say he is much more than that.

QUOTE (santo=dorf @ Aug 29, 2009 -> 02:11 PM) Now up to .333/.391/.571, but yes, trading one of your top prospects for NL 7th inning men is clearly a great way to build a successful ball club. Just ask Ed Wade. Great f***ing post. A bunch of people who never saw the guy play are ripping on him/downplaying his status as a prospect simply because we traded him. If he had gone 3-4 for US last night there would be a million threads about dumping Paulie or finding other ways to fit him in next year. This is ridiculous. I also have no idea why people don't think Allen can hit for average or good power and then sit here and praise Jordan Danks. Granted Danks is probably going to be viewed by most people around baseball as the better prospect because of his athleticism, speed, and position, but if projecting Allen as a .260 hitter with medicore power is an honest assessment then I'd hate to see what an honest assessment of Jordan's offensive numbers would be. Clearly some people here like Allen and have since well before the trade. No one ever said he was going to be a franchise piece or anything like that, people are just saying it was a s***ty trade.

QUOTE (T R U @ Aug 27, 2009 -> 08:16 PM) No he didn't, but it might happen sometime I hope it does. Shaq vs. Sir Charles in a ladder match with a donut hanging from the rafters in lieu of a title: make it happen Vince!

MMAJunkie on fire http://mmajunkie.com/news/15993/while-merg...y-real-soon.mma So the TV deal sounds even more likely than it did a few minutes ago, and it sounds like we'll be getting the big-name bantamweights and featherweights in the UFC. I'd have mixed feelings about that because it would really hurt the quality of the WEC broadcasts, which are AWESOME, and the Chael Sonnens of the UFC world water down the excitement of the lighter weight fighters, but at the same time, those bantams and feathers are a great way to showcase tremendous skill and grow the sport, plus those guys deserve to be stars whom are compensated like the other big stars in the company are.

QUOTE (Brian @ Aug 27, 2009 -> 08:03 PM) Shaq Really??? Did he wrestle? If so I need to see that video...

QUOTE (Brian @ Aug 27, 2009 -> 08:00 PM) 94 pitches already. For a 9-0 lead in the 5th inning, Danks needs to be more efficient. Who is that in your avatar with Jericho? Is that the Mabel guy from Men On a Mission who had the fake eye or whatever? OT, but just wondering.

QUOTE (Melissa1334 @ Aug 27, 2009 -> 07:55 PM) right field in fenway,so stupid whoever made it that way. I love how ballparks with their varying dimensions add character to game, however there should be a universal minimum and maximum as far as distance between homeplate and the outfield walls.

Looks like the UFC TV deal is pretty close and they're looking counter Fedor-Rogers with a BJ-Diego title fight. http://mmajunkie.com/news/15992/penn-vs-sa...adcast-deal.mma

QUOTE (WilliamTell @ Aug 27, 2009 -> 07:18 PM) Cuz it's not over until it's over. They have enough offense to score 8 runs in the next 7 innings. Ozzie will bring in Linebrink and Contreras to get work in while at the same time benching a couple hot hitters to put in bench players.

Wow, what is going on here?!?! I'm confused...

It sucks for Strikeforce that they don't have exclusive rights to guys like Overeem, but they are taking an intelligent approach here and it should pay off. By forging a relationship with other orgs that are losing money, they get to beef up their cards as well as build an association with other fighters and executives of other orgs, which will make it easier on them to assume contracts and fight libraries after the other guys go out of business. Dream has supposedly been losing quite a bit and ratings are way, way down from the Pride heyday, although I think they're on in an unfavorable timeslot over there and they are forced to compete with Sengoku in a market with limited interest and without an abundance of major non-Japanese draws. BTW WTF has gotten into the Sox? 7-0 now. Seems like they're building a cushion for the inevitable Linebrink appearance. Edit: PS the countdown show in on tonight.

Yes. I like Allen more than you (TS) do, but would've had no problem trading him (or any other prospect we have) for appropriate value, and I would not under any circumstances consider Tony Pena appropriate value. The deal looked bad at the time and now it looks even worse. Also, what Brandon Allen does or does not do in the Majors from this point on is mostly irrelevant IMO as far as it concerns this trade. What matters is what value we got out of our asset, and if it's another 6th inning righty specialist ready to hit arbitration after the season, then we got absolutely hosed, even if Allen never gets another hit in the Majors.

I used to really dislike Cowley but I guess I've been warming up to him. That's probably because we suck right now. If he's attempting to be funny while we're playing good baseball then he's annoying, but if he's ripping the team when the team needs to be ripped then I like him.

If Walker is going to be fired then I hope at the very least he's gone after the season, preferably this season if we fall even further out of the race. Make sure the young hitters on the team now and those coming up soon all get a chance to work with the new hitting coach in Spring. If we're going to keep Walker, fine, I don't really care. It's not as much a hitting thing to me as it is an execution thing. We have a few guys capable of putting up some big numbers, and usually they will over a given season. Offensively what pisses me off the most is failing to get the key hits, failing to bring in a man from 2B with no one out or bring in a man on 3B with less than 2 outs, the failure you properly lay down a f***ing bunt, the complete failure to hit a sac fly with ONE out instead of two as it seems so common that with one out we pop up or strike out, and with two we finally hit a ball deep enough. Those things really get to me. We need to be smarter at the plate and take better advantage of our opportunities. Bunting BTW is a key area for improvement because, if we're going to have a manager who is going to bunt when he's not supposed to be bunting, we need to make sure we at least get the f***ing thing down since we're already giving up an out regardless.