Chicago White Sox

A new hitting coach or coordinator armed with much better analytics and pro scouting reports will be able to tell and show him when and where to swing. It’s not about the message, but how you develop a game plan for each player to execute. I have wasted countless hours of my pathetic life watching this s%*# show of a team and I can say with full confidence that our hitters rarely have a plan when they go up to bat. That should hopefully change under this new regime, at least enough so to see actual tangible improvements.

The lack of protection is a concern, but mostly because he wasn’t being pitched to and he was too aggressive. That is a correctable with the right coaching. I’m not really worried about his defense as the speed is still there. And yes, he looked disinterested at times (he wasn’t the only one). These guys aren’t robots and playing for a historically bad team will wear you down. And if you have a weak manager, then it’s much easier for that to happen. I also think he wasn’t fully healthy even when playing. I really think you are taking one bad year and trying to make a trend out of it because a bias you have against the player.

In a deadline deal you’re asking?

The difference is that Robert has historically been a good player. He doesn’t need reinvention, but rather just adjustments. I do think new voices will help, especially if paired with real analytics and better pro scouting. I can’t stress enough the amount of low hanging fruit that can be quickly fixed by bringing in outside people and ideas. I’m not a Getz fan by any stretch, but I think he is making real structural changes that will bare immediate fruit.

Why? He’s literally exceeded 1.5 fWAR every single season but last year despite all his injuries. You seem to be overreacting to a bad 2024 season and ignoring his broader track record which is great player with a bad injury history.

While all that’s true, at some point luck has to be on our side. And perhaps with a new manager, a new hitting coach, a new hitting coordinator, and an actual analytics department there is a reason to bet on some good luck with Robert. The physical talent is still there unlike with Moncada who lost a ton of ability post Covid. And most of Robert’s injuries have been major one off things and not reoccurring soft tissue injuries. We just need four healthy months of Luis to cash in substantially on that $15M bet.

Oh s%*#, is this really happening?! Maybe Getz was big braining us all along with the Vargas trade? Get Soto’s best friend and have an automatic tiebreaker when the offers are close. This could be just like the Alonso/Jay situation but actually work this time because that nerd Hahn ain’t leading negotiations. And it would explain why we are so desperate to clear payroll…need that cash to land a fucking whale!

But if he’s healthy and returns to his 2021 to 2023 form (10.6 fWAR over 311 games or a 5.1 win pace) he’s an incredibly attractive asset. And honestly, we’re talking about $15M in salary for next year. We literally just burned $15M+ to the ground last year by acquiring and giving playing time to Maldonado, Lopez, Clevinger, & Brebbia. Holding onto Robert and betting on a return to form is the best possible way to utilize that money on potential flip candidates even if there is some chance you end up with nothing in the end.

I do wonder if a bigger reason they could be slashing revenue next year beyond the “Jerry is preparing to sell the team” theory is the fact that Chicago Sports Network is not yet being carried by multiple companies (Comcast, YouTube TV, etc.) and therefore revenue will be greatly impacted during this transition year. In a normal year it would be nearly impossible for the Sox to lose money with a $75M payroll, but perhaps that’s not the case in 2025 because of lower than usual local TV money.

I’m not sure what you mean by “in the green with revenue” as a team can’t have negative revenue. That being said, when you have a middle of the pack payroll (amongst other expenses) and the second lowest revenue in all of baseball you can easily have negative operating profit. And yes, the dude cuts payroll when revenue is projected to be down. That’s not all that unreasonable and most teams reduce spending considerably when rebuilding. The main issue beyond just his poor resource allocation is he won’t spend big up front to try and build a best in class product that will actually draw fans. He gradually ramps up payroll with fan attendance to help prevent large losses in any given year, but this can cap the potential upside and excitement around a young & upcoming team. And when you pair that with his refusal to swing big in free agency you end up with a very average product unless literally everything goes right. It’s a bad approach to business and one that wouldn’t work in other industries. https://www.forbes.com/teams/chicago-white-sox/

Where is this idea that Jerry is just caking off the Sox coming from? Forbes estimates we lost ~$130M over the past four years. The issue with Jerry isn’t that he won’t spend, it’s that he allocates his resources poorly because he’s stubborn, old-school, risk-adverse b****.

Robert has an option for next year so we don’t need to clear his salary to help facilitate a sale.

Then I’d assume Jerry is more concerned with making money than ever winning again. I can’t stress how little payroll $50M is when each team gets well beyond that amount in national TV money on top of every other revenue source. Even in a rebuild year it’s an absurd number for a team in Chicago.

Our payroll is ridiculously low and below where we ever were during the past rebuild if you adjust for inflation. Even for Jerry it would be absolutely ridiculous to dump Robert right now now for scraps to rock a $50M payroll.

I don’t necessarily disagree, but adding Walker requires blocking someone like Bush, Burke, Nastrini, Adams, etc. for a half season. And honestly, I think that is a double negative whereas Benintendi is really not blocking anyone at the moment and worst case blocks one of DeLoach or Fletcher if were to add an OF or DH.

JFC Walker was terrible last year (7.12 xERA) and his velocity was also down. Might be better gambling on Benintendi’s bouncing back that Walker.

Sure, but we don’t have to pick up the option for another year, so why not wait and see what his first half looks like? There is zero reason to dump him now and this idea that we wouldn’t pick up a $20M option if he put up say a 5 win season because we think he might be “Moncada 2.0” is crazy. Let’s see how does with a new coaching staff and Fuller in place. I’d rather get nothing for him after the upcoming season than rush to trade him for scraps right now.

He had like a 137 wRC+ against LHP over a four year period, I wouldn’t call that a fringe major leaguer but rather a useful platoon bat. That being said, he obviously could be cooked at this point.

Bohm is worth his projected $8.5M salary, so you’d almost certainly be taking less prospects with his inclusion. I think the reality would love use him instead of additional prospects and then replace him via free agency.

I fully agree. But I would say the optics of a $2M signing being our biggest and only real addition would be bad. I still think they add a couple more pieces to fill out the roster, but zero reason to sign C tier free agents to block the fringe prospects we already have in place like DeLoach, Fletcher, Sosa, & Lee IMO.

I know that and don’t get me wrong, it’s all somewhat embarrassing, but there is a difference between a $2M bench piece and an Erick Fedde caliber signing and I feel pretty confident they will add a guy or two in that range of a deal. Ultimately there is plenty we can rip Getz for that we don’t need to purposely take a second hand comment out of context to do so.

Why in the world would we want two years of Bohm? Do a three way trade if necessary, but holy s%*# Getz him and Lux don’t do s%*# for us.

Is this a real post?

Can we stop with this nonsense? We have no reason to believe (yet) that Slater was anything but their #1 target for a weak-side platoon OF role. If this ends up being their most expensive free agent addition then flame away, but it seems very apparent to me that Slater’s comment should be taken in the context of his specific role.

I don’t think Robert is traded until the deadline and no one is taking Benintendi unless he’s paired with Crochet. I still don’t believe they would actually do that.