GREEDY

It's always just 50k more. I don't think the negotiations are as simple as fanbases believe. You can meet their number and the agent tells you they will call their client and make sure that is where they are still at. Then you don't hear anything for them for weeks. Then it is a new number. It is not as simple as just saying yes. There are pretty good estimates of what players should get in ARB. If your club constantly goes above that number the agents hold you to the fire for even more. It sucks but you have to go to the arbitrator every so often.

So once or twice through the lineup is definitely "a thing" in the playoffs. So logically, assuming rules changes don't stunt this strategy that it would become "a thing" over time.

Yep. If you are in the "the offense is already stout" club, which is fine, don't you want one more capable defensive outfielder on top of Engel and Robert? Felt like this was mentioned daily in November. We've lost the script.

If they don't want to make the long term commitment to Conforto, for whatever reason, and the plan is to roll with what we have until the deadline and look to upgrade or bring in a natural platoon partner..... Would it really cost them that much to take a stab at a low cost platoon partner via trade now? You can always double down mid season if it isn't working. I feel like we've earned these kind of big club moves after being non-competitive for 4 years.

He was determined to make his previous home splits a non Story.

While this could be the case I'll say it isn't likely. The only thing different for Vaughn was possibly the travel. These kids play 100 - 150 games a year from the time they are 12 now. And on days they aren't playing they are taking hundreds of swings and pumping iron. I've felt that 162 grind as an excuse is highly overrated. Unless a guy doesn't fly well I don't really buy it anymore.

I think any fanbase would be perplexed by a player Hahn failed to give the QO to getting 2/44. I think any fanbase would be perplexed by Hahn picking up Kimbrel's 16 million dollar option. I think 95% of the members here would have preferred paying Conforto instead of last 20 million + spent. Until he is signed elsewhere it won't be all sunshine and daisies in any corner of Sox internet. Luis Robert, Yoan Moncada and Dylan Cease having upside remaining doens't mean fan(atics) shouldn't be upset with how resources are being used.

Imagine: You've tried to extend the guy for the past 5 years. You win the world series. He raises his ask. He comes back from the lockout raising his ask because of the banning of the shift. Anthopoulos was crying but it MUST have been so satisfying pulling the trigger on that deal.

I think he has some value if Velasquez is worth 3 million. The upside is there and you hold control for next season if he has success. While rebuilding teams SHOULD jump all the way down to a first year player, they always seem to burn a few million to save some face.

I think if the Sox trade for an A's pitcher that Reynaldo will be in the deal.

No. Meadows has some positive value. Based on eyeballing previous free agent reliever contracts, Kimbrel was worth closer to half of the option we picked up.

They used current funds (that most clubs use to improve their current roster) to give their pre-arb players real time raises in exchange for cost certainty (and in some cases more control) down the road. Then traded those assets that they essentially bought down. Everyone loved the trades because the front office literally tabbed over to MLB Pipeline's Top 100 and acquired as many guys from that list as they could. Then because the payroll was non-existent, they could outbid everyone for Robert. Bummer is really their only diamond in the rough find, despite having a completely wide open roster to give players and opportunity for half a decade. That is it. That is how we got here.

Hahn's job is so secure, he was able to burn about 8 million extra dollars on Kimbrel this season. Could have easily bought him out and resigned him if he was adamant on keeping him... but he burned millions in the name of giving himself a chance to still win the trade.

That is where the money is for appeasing your meatballs.

Feels like he had unlimited short term dollars to spend but wasn't willing to allocate it to a veteran starter? So weird.

Last year of the unbalanced schedule. Have to be one of the top 2 teams in the league for divisions to really matter from here on out. The Sox' greatest short term advantage has been neutered by the new rules. Leave him in Cleveland.

Just spitballing here but is is possible that Tony wanted Harrison? And went to Jerry to get the money?

It is almost as if Hahn looked at his remaining budget and bought the two highest profile players he could afford hoping to appease the meatball fan. Brutal offseason for the front office.

THREE MILLION? Hahn spending like a government agency where if he doesn't use it, he'll lose it.

Is it possible the Hahn has misjudged the market for high end relievers and has decided to triple and quadruple down instead of cutting his losses?

All winter, every player was repeating the mantra: "We want a league where everyone is competitive". They got their raise for pre-arb players. They got a strong bump to the "floor". But when push came to shove all that mattered was the CBT. Boras knows the money is in the top line. Fire both camps into the Glendale sun.

Was researching Andrew Vaughn, trying to prepare a case that everyone penciling him into the OF was wrong... and just because he made the routine plays last season that we were playing with fire.... And I've discovered that he touched 89 mph in high school. 89. How the hell did he get stuck at 1B being like 5'10? That HAD to be terrible for his marketability right? If I'm a scout and I see that a kid is a short first basemen I just assume there is nowhere on the field for him. I'd bet the house that he didn't get a ton of money his freshman year from Cal. Who decided he couldn't play 3B? Who didn't give the kid a shot in the OF? Like seriously, he is lucky as hell to have survived. This stupidity had the making of hard luck story where he had to mash for years at a D2 before getting drafted in the 30th round. Then what happened at Cal that he stayed at 1B? To be honest, I have no clue what to think now. I guess lets see him in the OF again lol.

I can't wait for all the fake insiders scurrying to make their guesses in like a 10 minute window today after this deal gets done.

If it were any other player, the union has his back and he doesn't miss a game.

The owners are about ready to go on the offensive, I think they have the players right where they want them. They've really not told the public their side of the story... the players have been out there campaigning, and while they have the support of fans (as clearly demonstrated on this very board) I'm not certain it will continue to be that overwhelming once the owners state their case and we start losing actual spring games. The owners are about to *claim* that they are asking for changes to make the game more popular and to an extent fair, and that the players ONLY care about increasing their piece of the pie. Which to an extent is *partially* true. We are definitely at peak "Screw rich owners" in this country as a whole, which should be very good for the players so we will see what transpires.