chw42

QUOTE (lostfan @ Nov 25, 2009 -> 02:09 PM) Our bench is so much better than it was last year. If we get Blanco, it might be one of the best in the AL. Even without Blanco, Flowers as a backup is pretty damn good. Plus, with Ozzie playing his bench a lot, it could pan out pretty well.

Andruw Jones had a .323 OBP last year with a SLG near .500, OPS of .783 and a wOBA of .338. He still has good plate discipline. Pretty good offensive numbers. His UZR in limited time at the corners was a 3.0. He contributed 0.8 wins last year for the Rangers. Pretty good piece for the bench.

QUOTE (Kalapse @ Nov 25, 2009 -> 02:00 PM) As long as they're not planning on plugging him into the lineup. That'd be disappointing to say the least. Jones is a good power bat off the bench. Having him start would be pretty stupid, although I feel that it's not beyond the White Sox.

Not bad for half a million. He can definitely hit some home runs.

B&B just said there's breaking news on the Sox...I think it might have something to do with Crisp.

QUOTE (Tex @ Nov 24, 2009 -> 06:06 AM) To kick off the consumer frenzy, I thought a shopping thread would be nice. What are you looking for? I am looking for deals on an iPod Classic or Touch and an external hard drive (1 TB). Target has one for $60. http://weeklyad.target.com/target/default...._email_RS911250

QUOTE (greg775 @ Nov 25, 2009 -> 02:01 AM) I just wonder why we all assume Crisp will be good defensively. Surgery on both shoulders for a guy already not known for a gun? Ranger's point is well taken IF everybody hits like they are capable we might be OK. Big if, but it's possible the lineup might score some runs. I wish they'd sign Thome and get that taken care of. Since when was arm everything on defense? Having surgery on his shoulders does nothing to his legs, which is his biggest defensive asset. If you're that scared that his arm sucks, put him in left field.

QUOTE (The Beast @ Nov 24, 2009 -> 02:41 PM) Supposedly at either Target or Walmart they will have Rock Band 2 for sale for $50. Walmart

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 24, 2009 -> 09:29 PM) You do realize that a 3.32 ERA in 2008 was the 5th best ERA in teh American league? Plus, Danks was worth 5.2 wins that year. Anything above 4 is all-star caliber. Danks owned in 08.

QUOTE (Chet Kincaid @ Nov 24, 2009 -> 06:53 PM) How many season tickets is this line up going to sell? I wouldn't even be sure that this would win the AL Central... and I KNOW it wouldn't win the World Series. What is there to fear in this line up? CC Sabathia or Josh Beckett would be salivating against this. Carlos Quentin? I mean come on, has Q degraded to merely nothing in the span of one year?

QUOTE (Melissa1334 @ Nov 24, 2009 -> 04:03 PM) funny how so many people want pods resigned. he most likely going to regress offensively and his defense and base running is awful. id definatley take a chance on crisp. i think its a great possibility since we need a leadoff hitter and kenny always gets his guy The chance of Pods re-producing what he did last year is very slim. Plus, Pods' defense and base running is terrible. That alone makes him much less valuable. Of course, there's always the possibility of Pods getting hurt. Signing Pods is as big of a risk as signing Crisp.

QUOTE (Chet Kincaid @ Nov 24, 2009 -> 02:13 PM) Is this the best we can do?? REALLY? CO CO CRISP?? .228 batting average?? Please NO! I hope we can do better... He was hurt and it was in 215 plate appearances. Crisp is a great defender (better than Rios in CF) and he can give you league average offense with some stolen bases at a cheap price. Why not?

As long as it's a cheap, incentive laden short-term deal, I'm fine with it. This off-season is reminding me a lot of the 2005 off-season for some reason.

For that 1 TB external, checkout Newegg.com or the CompUSA (it's actually a TigerDirect) in Naperville by Fox Valley Mall. I'm pretty sure iPod prices will stay stable on BlackFriday.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 24, 2009 -> 12:55 PM) I bet Boston would, if the Tigers would take back a deal not including Buchholz. Discussions should start with Buchholz. This isn't Victor Martinez we're talking about, this is Miguel Cabrera.

Frank's 94 season was Barry Bonds post-2001 caliber. He would have had 55-60 home runs and 150+ RBI with an OPS over 1.200. The guy has a career OPS+ of 156, which is 20 points higher than Ken Griffey Jr.'s career OPS+, somebody most consider a sure first-ballot hall of famer. If Frank doesn't get in first-ballot, something is wrong with baseball.

Not many teams can afford him...

You can start becoming nervous if the team we have now is the same team we have in March. Right now, it's a matter of being patient.

Who voted for Miguel Cabrera? Is this the same guy who voted Verlander for Cy Young? Idiot...

QUOTE (flavum @ Nov 23, 2009 -> 11:36 AM) Rice's career was more compact. His peak numbers were over a 10-12 year period where he was clearly one of the elite run producers and feared hitters in baseball. Baines accumulated big numbers over 20+ seasons. If you're an "accumulator", you have to get to 500 homers and/or 3000 hits. Baines didn't get to either and he never got close to winning an MVP. He came in 9th once and 10th once. He just doesn't cut it as a Hall of Fame player. He got his number retired and a statue from the White Sox...that's his Hall of Fame. I'd say Baines was a lot more consistent throughout his career. Rice really leveled off after 1983, but you're right he was a monster for a couple of years, which makes him one of the elite players in the league for nearly half a decade, something that Baines was not. However, you can say that consistency can also get you somewhere, just look at a guy like Craig Biggio. Granted, he's nothing spectacular, but the fact that he is an accumulator with 3,000 hits and played many weaker positions will probably get him into the hall sooner or later.

QUOTE (fathom @ Nov 23, 2009 -> 11:33 AM) Was it speed or just being in the right place at the right time? He had a huge hole to run through, and probably 99 pct of the running backs in the NFL score on that play. Either one works because Forte hasn't gotten either one so far this year.

The only good thing coming out of last night's game was Kahlil Bell (I always think of Khalil Greene when I hear see name for some reason...). After watching Forte run like a 35 year old for most of the year, it was refreshing to see a burst of speed.

He won't get in. His offensive stats are nice, but the fact that he was a DH for the second half of his career probably put the nail on the coffin. If Jim Rice can get in with his stats, so can Baines. The only difference is that Rice actually played a position on the field and that matters.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Nov 22, 2009 -> 08:04 AM) This is unacceptable. They don't even eat Chop Suey in Japan... On another note, I honestly don't see any team going after Matsui with mad money. Seattle might do it, but they have Griffey as a full time DH. I don't think they want to bench him, even though they should. At this point, he's just a DH and hitters that can only be a DH aren't worth much of anything in terms of value.

QUOTE (beck72 @ Nov 22, 2009 -> 08:48 AM) http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/10357594 I'm glad to hear the Sox seem to be keeping their options open regarding Teahen at 3b. I guess it comes down to who the Sox can add at 2b, 3b or the OF that would allow them to move Teahen away from 3b. Here are a few options that come to mind: 3b: [Which would move Gordon to 2b, and Teahen to RF or 1b]. *Adrian Beltre. Wouldn't cost a draft pick, though he's a type B. Seattle won't offer him arb. Would solidify the left side of the IF with his defense. Would likely get a 2 yr, $12, 13 mill. deal. The sox would still need someone for leadoff, such as a Randy Winn for RF or Pods for LF. I like Randy Winn for RF [1 yr, $5 mill], with Teahen for 1b. Beltre's power should come back moving away from Sea. and getting healthy, which could make up for Winn's lower power numbers in RF. Under this scenario, Konerko would likely have to be moved to afford both Beltre and Winn [most likely in a salary swap for bad contracts]. Thome could then be signed for DH [1 yr, $5 mill] and provide the sox with LH power. Getting all signed would be tough. Though the sox could sign Beltre to a lower 2010 salary, such as $5 mill. in 2010, and $7 mill in 2011, with PK's salary coming off the books. The sox could sign Pods to lower deal, have him for LF, with Quentin going to RF. Yet I like the defensive improvements that Beltre and Winn would give the Sox. *Chone Figgins. Too expensive. Likely not happening. 2b: [which would move Beckham back to 3b, and Teahen to the OF or 1b] *Orlando Hudson. Though the sox would likely lose their 2nd rd draft pick, he would likely take a 2 yr deal, for $11, 12 mill. He could hit at the top of the order, and is solid at 2b. *Felipe Lopez: It wouldn't cost the sox a pick, as he's a type B. And he's a better defender than Hudson. Hudson is a better overall bat, and Lopez may have had a career year at the plate in 2009. Lopez should get a similar deal as Hudson's 2 yr deal, for $10, 11 mill. I question Lopez as he's moved around a lot, not by his choice. What are some other options/ ideas if the sox are still looking at having Teahen for other than 3b? Teahen should be playing right field or DHing. Winn is getting old, he had a bad season offensively in San Francisco last year, but his glove is still decent. I don't actually think he's worth 5 million in the market right now. I like the idea of Beltre, his home/away splits are crazy. Safeco has sucked the life out of him, but I'm not sure $7 million per is enough for him. Either way, like you said, for any of these deals to be done, we need to shed some contracts, most likely Konerko's or maybe even Jenks' arbitration.