Chicago White Sox

QUOTE (wrathofhahn @ Feb 13, 2018 -> 02:38 PM) We have so much depth in the OF and kids coming down the pike. JDM is going to take 5 years do we really want him clogging DH for that long? 3B I at least understand we have Burger but really noone else and Burger can be moved to 1B or DH if he hits when he comes up If anything we should be looking to move OF off our ML to make space for some of the kids next year. JDM is an elite hitter. Do you think the Red Sox regret having David Ortiz as their DH all those years? At the right price, I'm 100% for it. Don't really see who'd he be blocking at DH. The OFs you refer to hopefully remain OFs. If we have too many of them, we should trade the excess ones to fill other needs. I'm ok with using a rotating DH this year if need be, but generally speaking I prefer a guy who can handle that role on an everyday basis. Don't really want to trot slightly above league average hitters out of that spot if I don't have to.

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Feb 13, 2018 -> 12:47 PM) At least we agree on JDM but it wasn't long ago most of the board thought Yolmer was at best a utility guy and many still hold that opinion. Moustakas has been an All Star 2 of the last 3 years and the one year he didn't make it he was injured.Is that really average AT BEST or are we looking at his WAR to determine that ? With all the arguments against signing aging vets what makes Donaldson so attractive? He will be in age 33 season for the 2019 season . Donaldson had his MVP season at 29 . Sure Yolmer could field the position well but he never will be a middle of the order bat and counting on Burger to be a fast developer and sticking at 3rd base isn't a good plan either. I don't want to sound too high on Moustaskas because he surely has his warts but again LH power middle of the order bats haven't exactly grown on trees for the Sox. If plan A is Machado prepare to be disappointed if he is truly serious about sticking at SS and with the big boys trying to make room for the impact free agents. I'm anticipating a big hole at 3rd base because all your plans leave a lot to be desired and I'd rather take my chances on Moustakas if the price/years are right this year. If JDM is a legit difference maker and can change the complexion of your lineup then adding another 35 HR guy like Moustaskas can upgrade legit to contender maybe by 2019 instead of 2020. Couple thoughts here. I'm just not personally a big fan of what Moustakes brings to the table. The left-handed power is nice, but he's always been a relatively low OBP player. His defense appears to be on the decline as well. That's not to say he can't be a useful player, but I really don't want to commit fairly big dollars to a guy who will probably be a 2 WAR/year player over the next four or five years. As for Donaldson, the dude is actually a really good athlete and has remained incredibly productive through his age 32 season. He can actually regress and still remain a valuable player. Hell, he could probably be moved to 1B at the end of a deal and still be a valuable contributor. Again, with Donaldson it all comes down to the money & years. If I can get him for five years or less (which remains to be seen), I could be willing to roll the dice if I miss out on Machado. I think Donaldson is likely to provide much more value from 2019 to 2022 than Moustakes even he ultimately costs more. And at this point in the rebuild, I'd rather gamble on upside than certainty when it comes to free agents.

There's nothing wrong with signing a free agent this off-season if it's the right fit. Hell, Wellington Castillo is the perfect example of that and made a ton of sense as a short-term transition option to Collins/Zavala. I just don't think locking in an average at best 3B like Moustakas makes a lot of sense right now. Plan A for 3B should Manny Machado next off-season. Plan B could be Josh Donaldson based on the price/years. Plan C could be Yolmer for a year and then a run Arenado. If you can't land any of those impact free agents, then trade for or sign someone on a shorter-term deal and hope Burger is a fast mover. Point is there are too many attractive alternatives over the next couple of off-seasons to lock in a passable one today. And quite frankly, I'm not sure Moustakas would be that much of an upgrade of Sanchez. The one guy I'd still be open to signing right now is JDM. He's a legit difference maker with the bat and can instantly change the complexion of our lineup. If I can get him at an affordable price, I'm willing to make that move now.

QUOTE (CWSpalehoseCWS @ Feb 12, 2018 -> 10:30 PM) Couple things I'd like to add: Yermin Mercedes was a rule-5 in the Triple-A phase. Pretty sure he has to stay in Charlotte or be sent back to the Orioles. I can't see Michalczewski or Adams making the jump to Charlotte. They had less than impressive years and still have things to work on. Sox would be doing them a disservice if they promoted them to begin the year, IMO. I don’t think the minor league portion of the Rule 5 draft works like that. I believe the Sox can start Mercedes at whatever level they like.

QUOTE (WBWSF @ Feb 12, 2018 -> 08:49 PM) I will not brag or feel vindicated if I'm right. Frankly this whole situation stinks as far as I'm concerned. But you like the last 10 years where we “went for it” most years and accomplished jack s***?

They also signed Castillo to be their interim starting catcher. Could have gone cheap with a Narvaez/Smith platoon, but they actually added a veteran. They would spend the money if something out there made sense in both the short & long-run but typically there aren’t a lot of deals like that for teams in year 2 of a rebuild. They’ll most certainly be aggressive next year and are likely to spend more than they ever have in free agency.

QUOTE (WBWSF @ Feb 12, 2018 -> 06:34 PM) 1) They are rebuilding as cheaply as possible. 2) They are rebuilding as cheaply as possible. 3) They are rebuilding as cheaply as possible. Yup, paying $50M for Luis Robert is rebuilding as cheaply as possible. When does this clown get the boot?

I really think Curbelo opens the season with Kannapolis.

We need to get some clarity on Jimenez’s arm because I’ve seen it listed as plus to below average.

CL: Soria SU: Jones SU: Minaya MR: Avalin MR: Rondon MR: Cedeno MR: Infante I think they start the season without a true long reliever. I think they leave some of the more talented young guys (Vierira, Bummer, Fry, etc) in AAA to start the season. That allows guys like Rondon & Cedeno to sneak onto the opening day roster. I also think Farquhar is cut/traded by the end of camp simply due to other veterans being more attractive options.

Now that we’re two days away from pitchers & catchers reporting to Spring Training, I thought it would be fun to do some Opening Day roster predictions. We’ll start with the bullpen, which figures to be one of the more interesting areas in terms of competition. The rules are simple: list the guys who will be in our opening day bullpen and what role they will serve (CL, SU, MR, LR).

QUOTE (SonofaRoache @ Feb 10, 2018 -> 10:34 PM) It sucks that the Cubs are a great team but you are blinded by hate. They've to to 3 stright NLCS's and will go back again this year. He’s most definitely blinded by hate, but you lose all credibility when you speak like a Sith and say the Cubs will be going back to the NLCS next year. The playoffs are always a crap shoot and they really had to battle to make it to the NLCS in 2016 & 2017. They’ll most likely go to the playoffs next year, but let’s check the rest at the door given the Dodgers & Nationals are as good if not better than the Cubs.

QUOTE (WBWSF @ Feb 10, 2018 -> 03:28 PM) I hate the Cubs but I must admit that it must be nice being one one of their fans now. It has to feel good to have a ownership that wants to win now. I’m impressed seeing you troll here and Soxmachine. That takes some serious will & determination.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ Feb 9, 2018 -> 02:37 PM) I think Jemeye posted on twitter last night that the Troika from last week picked the teams and Marie made it so that her team would lose and stacked one team so they would throw in Brad. I don't know why MTV cut that part out though. https://imgur.com/gallery/EMFCl I swear TJ said the teams were random, but what you’re saying make much more sense.

I still maintain if we can somehow get JDM on the cheap I’d say do it. Otherwise, I’d stick with what we have on the positional side. I’d rather rotate young guys through the DH spot than get some stop-gap veteran type.

The teams for that last Challenge were so bogus. There was almost no chance Banannas’ team wouldn’t win. I really don’t like the guys & girls competing against one another.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jan 29, 2018 -> 09:09 AM) Britni is awful. Not a surprise deadbeat Brad loves her. ?

QUOTE (wrathofhahn @ Feb 7, 2018 -> 12:27 PM) Interesting I think the bullpen will be better then that. Also no way the OF looks like that. If Delmonico hits he's our everyday LF. Moncada should hit better then .233 with a .740 ish OPS. Hard to see Anderson hit .265 with a .289 OBP. He may hit .240 with a .289 OBP lol. Is that really predicting 16 HRs from Delmonico in 254 PAs? I may be his biggest fan here, but those numbers are beyond nuts.

QUOTE (bmags @ Feb 5, 2018 -> 03:44 PM) If they consider him a 50 but with high variance I could see him left off, but I'm hoping they still consider him a 50. Can't wait for team lists to come out to see. He was a 45 on last year’s Cubs list. While I think he should be a 50, I’m not sure that Longenhagen will feel he did enough in 2017 to make that jump. The fact that he’s 22 and hasn’t cracked High A or 100 innings in his career is somewhat troubling. At some point the baby gloves have to come off and Cease will have to prove he can handle a starter’s workload against more advanced hitters. Until that happens I can understand why people would be skeptical despite his insane stuff.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 5, 2018 -> 03:55 PM) Another more hopeful comp could be Kyle Tucker of the Astros. 18 year old out of the draft in 2015 he put up a .647 OPS, 19 year old in 2016 improved to .798, 20 year old in 2017 improved to .874 to make him a major prospect. The home runs went from 3 to 9 to 25 those years. Yeah, I think people need to be realistic with Rutherford and hope for gradual improvements. As long as he shows some reasonable signs of progress next year, I’ll remain optimistic with him. Development isn’t always linear and he has the physical tools to make a big leap at some point.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Feb 4, 2018 -> 02:36 AM) https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-network-top-10...ion/c-264680678 Abreu 6th at 1b, Tyler Flowers 9th at catcher... I am so confused about this post. What does Tyler Flowers have to do with anything?

One nice thing about Rondon is he is only 27 and has three years of control left. If Coop can somehow fix him, he could become a valuable piece.

QUOTE (Thad Bosley @ Feb 3, 2018 -> 01:13 AM) Just what this council needs: the insights of baseball’s most tenured yet most severely flawed and obviously most failed owner with a seat at its table.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Feb 2, 2018 -> 12:59 PM) One of the reasons they would ever be in the ballpark with Machado is the money they save now. I'm not sure I follow. Do mind elaborating?

QUOTE (Sarava @ Feb 2, 2018 -> 12:33 PM) If they have an inkling that they might spend $300+ mil on Machado next winter, then yes I think they would take it easy on the bank account leading up to that to better afford it. And I love the Luis Robert signing. He's a bigtime prospect. He was billed as a guy that very well could be a top 5 or 10 prospect in short order. And did that affect next year's chances? Well, all the numbers come from the same place. But I've thought all along, they spent the $50 mil, knowing the next year's payroll (2018) would be significantly lower. In any event, you aren't going to get a Luis Robert caliber prospect for Kemp's contract. But hey, if you can, then I could accept hurting the chances of signing Machado next year. But it's not happening. The Dodgers are stingy with their prospects. They certainly aren't giving up a haul to remove one contract. Machado’s $300M contract is going to be over 10 years or more. We’re not paying for all of that up front. Taking on Kemp’s contract really shouldn’t impact our ability to land Machado next year. The bigger concerns will be how much of our future payroll are we willing to to commit to one player and how much long-term risk are we willing to take on in terms of contract length. Short-term cash flow really shouldn’t be a problem for us.