Kenny Hates Prospects

QUOTE (iamshack @ Aug 10, 2009 -> 12:11 AM) Say whatever you want about the guy, there is no taking away 3 or 4 seasons he has put up, including this one, which is one of the best by anyone in the National League this year. I agree, he's having a great season. He did the same thing for us in 2007. He just isn't the type of pitcher that can stay mentally focused and confident. When he's not thinking and just out there letting his stuff work for itself and the guy behind the plate is keeping with what is working, he can be awesome. His 2-seamer is nasty, his change his nasty, he can throw a plus CB and a plus slider at times, I mean he has 4 pitches that can get people out. If he had the mentality of an ace he'd be one. But as history has shown, put some pressure on him and he fails (all of his great seasons were not tight playoff races) and once he hits a rough patch he can't work himself out of it. He's one of those guys who can go out there with great stuff and yet still give up a 5 spot in the 3rd inning through poor pitch selection, pecking at the corners, and lack of confidence in his breaking ball.

QUOTE (WCSox @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 11:57 PM) More like he failed with us, and the Yankees. If the Braves put him in a high-pressure situation, I'm sure that he'll fail with them as well. Peavy's two post-season starts against the Cardinals were indeed awful and he has a lot to prove. That said, he threw that horrible game in the '05 playoffs with a broken rib. And he hasn't gotten the boot from two different teams for being unable to man-up down the stretch. Don't forget he wasn't exactly an ace his first three years with Montreal either. BTW I'm not saying Javy is a bad pitcher either. He's actually very good. But, Javy is a #2-#4 depending on the season and Peavy is typically a #1-#2. Javy has always had the ability to be an ace but after watching him pitch here we all can see why that hasn't happened for him. Javy is just one of those guys that stats people can never understand, and he's the perfect example of why you need to watch a baseball game. His WHIP is always pretty low, his K/9 is always very high, his BB/9 is always very low, so people look at the numbers and can't figure out what is wrong. Whoever it is that has the sig talking about Javy trying to patent the phrase "one bad pitch" and "one bad inning" is right on. He totally loses confidence and faith in his stuff and ends up throwing the wrong pitch in the wrong count (he'll throw a f***ing hanging curve 2-1/3-1 after he'd been dominating with his FB + CH), and often after getting into a jam by walking the speey #1/#2/#9 hitter after going 0-2 on him and then getting fancy trying to strike him out.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 11:42 PM) I don't think there is any idea that we failed with Javy. I have a feeling we did improve his mental makeup a bit, and perhaps the Braves were able to turn the corner with him on his mechanics. There is no denying that he has been an absolute horse this year, experience a renaissance of sorts. Granted he is pitching in a pitcher's park, in a weaker league. But anyone who wants to rip on Javy needs to have the same concerns with Jake Peavy. Their situations are quite similar. Javy has figured it out this year. Before that he figured it out in 2007. Before that he figured it out in Montreal. Javy is Javy. He'll suck ass next year and if the Braves make the playoffs he'll keep them from winning games. I also don't see why concerns with Jake would be similar. Javy pitched in the NL too and got lit up there as well by doing the same s*** we saw when he was here. Jake has yet to prove he's a mental midget on the mound, and really the only concern I see that they both share is their ability to blow up in the playoffs. Here's something to look at: Javy's numbers vs. career opponents (scroll down) Peavy's numbers vs. career opponents (scroll down) Javy also pitched in Montreal for quite a while and both have spent most of their days in the NL. Look at how much better Peavy's numbers are. Peavy for example is 7-4 with a 2.31 ERA, .216 BAA, .287 OBPA, .340 SLGA against the Astros in his career and they play in a hitters' dream and have always had some dangerous lineups. Off Javy OTOH they are hitting .280 with a .786 OPS. Just scroll down and look at the ERA and BAA against especially. Not all of that accounts for Petco. Peavy is just a much better pitcher, which is why he won a Cy Young and why he's considered an ace while Javy is just another career underachiever.

QUOTE (Tony82087 @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 10:10 PM) For every wavier claim that gets reported by the media, 30 don't. I'd say that would be more accurate. Half our roster has probably already been claimed on waivers. Especially Wise. I remember in 2005 there was a story that had people (think on WSI?) freaking out because Buehrle had been claimed by someone.

QUOTE (chunk23 @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 11:32 PM) I think he means he can't confirm because he isn't certain of what team they scout for. Ahh, that makes sense then.

QUOTE (Dizzy Sox @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 11:21 PM) I'm waiting for the punch line: Scouts watching McCulloch... For laughs? Because they lost a bet? Instead of working? The punchline is in the title. I don't think I've even so much as glanced at a McCulloch box score for years other than by accident. He's one of those guys you just pass over when seeing how the prospects are doing... and to think someone actually came to watch him pitch?? This is very exciting though. In the back of my mind I had been thinking about McCulloch in a Rios deal simply because the Jays could then title their headline "Rios Nets First Round Pick(s)."

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 09:26 PM) Because I can't confirm from which team, so that's why I said that. Can you confirm to me via PM? I promise I won't tell anyone... And even if it isn't the Jays I just hope he gets traded so the book can be finally closed on all those bad drafts and poor development projects. McCulloch + Fields to the Jays would be perfect.

QUOTE (MHizzle85 @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 11:02 PM) Torres got his bell rung tonight. Another bland night of fights other than the main events. Are you f***ing serious? Were you seriously bored through Mizugaki-Curran and Benavidez-Cruz??? OMG the fights tonight were INCREDIBLE! Another kickass showing by the WEC - P4P the most exciting fight promotion in the world IMO. I felt so sad for Miguel though. He's one of my favorites and I kind of felt like Mir after he got KO'd. But Bowles is legit and deserves it. Still think Miguel had the fight won if he'd thrown a knee right up the middle, which I was waiting for but never came. He kept coming forward while Bowles had his feet planted and kept throwing haymakers which Bowles was able to counter. I think if Torres had fired one of those nasty knees as Bowles stopped backpeddling he would have finished it. I see a pissed off Torres taking his belt back after rubbing it in the doubters' faces by smashing Benavidez on the way to a rematch. Edit: Forgot about Castillo-Lamas! Man, what a wicked right hand! And I think Massouh got robbed tonight too.

I think it's safe to say that in the Cell we'd see Rios turn on a lot more fastballs and hit more home runs as a result. He does have power to all fields and if you watch some of his highlights he does hit some real bombs to straight-away CF in Rogers Centre. Going from turf to grass should keep his legs fresher over the course of a season, and playing for an aggressive manager like Ozzie should bring up his SB totals. He'll have protection here pretty much wherever the Sox hit him in the lineup and the change of scenery should help. I bet he could also learn a few things from JD as well. Rios has oodles of natural ability and even if he doesn't become the type of elite, perennial All-Star kind of player he is capable of becoming, I think he'll still become a very good all-around CF for us. He'll make our defense leaps and bounds better plus he'll provide more speed on the basepaths. The speed + power combo is the best type of package for our park and our manager. His contact rate is always high too, and just in general he should be able to get more loft and carry here with the winds, and he should stay hot longer in the summer. I just love this guy and always have, and a bit over a year ago it would have been a pipedream to me to get him. Well, we might get him and I REALLY hope we do. His versatility also complements our toolsy OFers in the minors very well. There's not much to dislike here from my perspective. I hope that if Kenny does have to give up some talent he will. No D2, no Flowers, no Hudson, etc. but I'd be willing to go for a package of talent like Gilmore + Infante + Ely + throw-in if need be. Thinking more and more about it, this really could be an incredible steal. I don't think we'll have to give up that much though, and hopefully we don't have to give up anything, but the last thing I'd do is end negotiations over some longshot prospect with some ability or some UT/RP/5th starter prospect that is essentially replaceable through FA for near the league minimum or just a bit more. I do expect the Jays to ask for at least a few names just so their fans think they got something in return.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 04:59 PM) The thing is, do we really believe someone like Hudson has the ability/talent to go on a Brandon McCarthy-esque 2005 roll down the stretch? I think the real question is, do we believe Hudson can regularly go 6-7 innings giving up 5ER or less? If so, bring him on because he's better than Contreras.

QUOTE (SoxFan562004 @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 04:12 PM) Zuffa will ice him for as long as they can if he wants to go that route. They'll wait to he has one fight left, offer him a title shot at whatever division he's fighting in and if he rejects it they won't schedule another fight until they have to. I thought this with Machida, but now with Anderson looking good at 205, those are 2 more names you could easily add as entertaining fights for Fedor if he fought in the UFC. Would favor Fedor in both, but Fedor's not a gigantic HW and I think they would be good fights. I'd love those fights. I'd take both Anderson and Lyoto over Fedor but those fights would be close. Fedor could fight Anderson, Lyoto, and Lesnar. Instead we're probably looking at Overeem, Werdum, and Rogers. Yay.

QUOTE (MHizzle85 @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 04:30 PM) I think if Dana wanted Big John in there he could do it. It's no coincidence that once he made some slightly negative remarks about the UFC in his brief stint as a analyst that he hasn't been back to ref a UFC fight. Dana has ripped Mazzagatti to shreds. Florian and Lesnar have also ripped Mazzagatti publicly, Florian doing it on MMA Live. Lots of big fighters plus the promoter of the biggest MMA promotion in the world have said they don't want Mazzagatti around. Yet, Mazzagatti is still reffing big UFC cards. Just goes to show how much influence Dana and his fighters have over the athletic commissions. Dana has no say in the reffing, that's up to the commissions. The only time it matters is when the UFC goes into new territories without sanctioning bodies and then I believe Marc Ratner takes care of things on behalf of the UFC. So in those situations they may get to pick refs, but I'm not sure. The reason McCarthy isn't in the UFC is because I believe he's only licensed in California. On top of that, he owns a gym which fighters will train at and he also has friendships with a lot of top fighters. Both of these issues create a conflict of interest which is why a big Zuffa card in California probably isn't going to have Big John on it. The commission is the one who sends the refs to certain events and then selects which fights they oversee. McCarthy has stated all this stuff before, and he's also said that he's made recommendations to the commission that he is specifically left out of officiating bouts because of possible conflicts of interest. In the past when the sport was a lot smaller it was a different game. But with a lot more refs now, and some good ones at that, and with a lot more money being put into the sport and a lot more money being at risk through gaming, and with a lot more eyes on the sport in general, things have to be different. In the past BJM probably could have reffed a fight between his brother and his own worst enemy and nobody would have given a f*** or said anything, but everything is changing.

QUOTE (WCSox @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 10:30 AM) Apparently you didn't watch JD during the first half of his career. I saw a lot of him when he was with the Royals and he was definitely above average in RF. He was still halfway decent in his first year with the Sox but, as is correctly stated in this thread, has lost most of his range over the past few years and looks like he's running through sand at this point. +1 Dye was one of the best all-around players in baseball when he was with the Royals. Injuries and age have caused him to deteriorate, but it's not like he wasn't a stud at one point. Ditto for a lot of guys, like Vladdy and Andruw Jones for instance.

So the rumor is Anderson is strongly considering giving up the MW title and moving permanently to 205 - but still without fighting Machida. It sure looks like Anderson wants to get out of his UFC contract by escaping the championship clause so he can then go box RJJ. Ugh. I understand that Anderson wants to challenge himself but the guy isn't a boxer.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 03:19 PM) Contreras had a nice streak of starts earlier, then started dawdling around and couldn't throw a strike. He was great today, then gave up 4 runs but one was a broken bat hit, another a swinging bunt, and of course the 2 walks. He's a far better option than Torres or Whisler or Egbert or even Hudson at this time. You're probably right about Contreras still being better than Torres, Whisler, and Egbert but I'm mad as hell at Jose and his lack of intelligence on the mound. It's one thing to go out there with nothing and give it up, but it's another to constantly let guys back into AB's after getting ahead and constantly dropping down when everyone knows the guy at the plate is sitting on it.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Aug 9, 2009 -> 03:14 PM) He looked great through 4. He was awesome until the all star break. Let him go a couple more. He still has it when he throws strikes. Its not like the guys they bring up from AAA do better. Unless he drops down... I know our Charlotte options suck but at this point I'd rather try something new and have it fail than keep running the "Full" Count out there.

I say 1 but am hoping 0. Get this guy out of here. Edit: This was supposed to be a f***ing poll.

Peavy needs to get here NOW.

Actually, just thinking about it, if we get Rios we can replace both Wise and Kotsay at the same time. This would open up a spot to (ducks for flying tomatoes) bring up either Fields, Betemit or Phillips (pinch hitter with pop and 1B sub), or Lillibridge (pinch runner and backup SS because Nix is f***ing atrocious), or if we want to use Nix or somebody else as a backup at 1B, we could even bring up another pitcher. Or maybe we acquire someone to better fit the bench?

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Aug 8, 2009 -> 01:12 PM) I look forward to the inevitable Scott Podsednik backlash that’s bound to occur if this move is made. I love Scotty Pods, but ultimately his defense in CF is bad enough to warrant him being replaced, by the superior all-around player that is Alexis Rios. Agree that Rios is a hell of a lot better (no knock on Pods BTW), but I think Pods is still going to play a lot. On days Rios gets off, I'd much rather have Pods' bat in CF than Wise. On days Dye or CQ get rest, I'd much rather have Pods in LF/CF than Wise. If we get Rios I still expect Pods to play almost daily anyway. We'll just rotate around. With Thome benched against a lot of lefties (and maybe ALL lefties if we get Rios) it will open up even more playing time.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Aug 8, 2009 -> 01:09 PM) Maybe if it was a short term deal with a lot of incentives. Maybe a $3M base with the possibility of earning another $2M with incentives or something, but that's about as much as I could see Pods getting. Maybe he doesn't even get that since he's not a true CF and he doesn't have the type of power teams look for in a LF or DH. Whatever Johnny Damon gets, and despite his season he shouldn't get all that much guaranteed, expect Pods to get much less.

QUOTE (flavum @ Aug 8, 2009 -> 12:38 PM) Lucas Harrell was placed on the DL. There's the spot for Hudson to replace him.

QUOTE (chisoxfan09 @ Aug 8, 2009 -> 02:16 AM) Kenny, quick question on this. I think you might know. Huddie signed in 2008 and this is his first full year in MILB. But those 3 months of service time count (2008) towards his 6 year contract right? Here is my question: 1. 2008 - 3 months service time MILB 2. 2009 - 1 full year service time MILB 3. 2010 - Projected 1 full year service time MLB 4. 2011 - Projected 1 full year service time MLB 5. 2012 - Projected 1 full year service time MLB 6. 2013 - Projected 1 full year service time MLB 7. 2014 - ??? ** All his MLB year are just hypothetical ** Which years from 2012-2014 are arb years and which are really under control and what the Sox pay him according to the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) which classifies him as a non Free Agent until after the 2014 season? Since he signed the contract in July/Aug of 2008 does it run exactly 6 years to the date into the same month in 2014 or until the end of the 2014 season? See this is the confusing part as many draft players sign between the draft at the end of June and before the signing deadling of Aug 17th which is still before the end of the MLB season. Players generally sign 6 year initial contracts as prospects out of the draft is what I understand. Service time begins when a player hits the Majors, but it doesn't necessarily go in "years." Service time goes by days - not games or appearances - on the active MLB roster, with 172 I believe (have to check that) being considered one year of service time. A player could theoretically spend 10 days on the roster 1 year, then 20 on the roster in a second year, then 10 more on the roster in a third year, but in the end he's only got 40 days of service time, not 3 years service time. MILB stuff only counts when a player signs a MLB contract (which Hudson didn't) because then the player has to be put on the 40-man roster, and each season that the player appears on the 40-man counts against an option year (if he has been optioned to the minors). Other than that, there's a 6-year (I believe) minor league period as well where after that period, if a player isn't added to the 40-man, he becomes a minor league free agent. There's also the minor league phase of the Rule-5 which is basically put in place to keep clubs from holding down players in leagues they've overgrown, but none of this stuff matters concerning Hudson. MILB time doesn't affect him in any case.

QUOTE (Tony82087 @ Aug 8, 2009 -> 12:34 PM) Oddly enough, I wouldn't be surprised at all to see Dye end up in Toronto in the off-season if Rios is traded..... I would. After these last 2 seasons Dye is still going to be pretty expensive for a team like Toronto. And don't forget that Toronto is still obligated to pay BJ Ryan who they released and also Lyle Overbay, who is going to be very hard to move IMO. If Toronto adds a bat, I expect it to be more of the Hideki Matsui variety, i.e. a slugger on a very low base salary, possibly with incentives. Especially if they still have Overbay. The other thing to consider too is that if the Jays are now forced to deal Halladay over the offseason, there's really no reason to add a premium piece anywhere. They'd be better served to target reclamation projects on the cheap who would provide veteran leadership and who can be let go easily should they fail to perform. Maybe they target a guy like Aubrey Huff who will be undervalued as a bat and then pick up a pitcher like Garland or something. Rolen is already gone, and if Halladay and Rios are also gone by ST next year then it doesn't make a lot of sense to try and contend in that division.

Ricciardi can say, think, or demand whatever he wants. The real decision is going to come from ownership. If ownership will allow Ricciardi to chance a better package over the offseason then fine, but if ownership wants that contract gone NOW while they have the chance, then Rios is ours. This is NOT simply Ricciardi's decision.