Chicago White Sox

QUOTE (Vance Law @ Aug 4, 2014 -> 10:10 PM) It was apparently 7/9 He's hitting .390 with 11 xbh and 23.4% strikeout rate with glasses That K rate is a pretty nice improvement for him. If he can maintain that rate along with the increase in power the rest of the way, maybe we can revisit the possibility of him being our starting catcher in 2015. Until then, we should consider nothing more than backup material going forward.

QUOTE (oldsox @ Aug 4, 2014 -> 09:03 PM) Much has been said here recently about the 2014 pitching staff. It needs help next year. Free Agency will be discussed in off season, but you can't count on that as a savior for next year. Even though most of Sox better pitching prospects are in lower minors (W-S on down) there are several at Charlotte and Birminghame who will probably be given serious consideration sometime in 2015. Alphabetically, they include Bassitt, Beck, Blough, Bucciferro, Casey, Fuentes, Recchia, Snodgrass, Vance. The following roster pitchers probably don't figure to be in the mix Belisario, Guerra, Jones, Lindstrom, Paulino, Rienzo, Surkamp, Thompson. I didn't include Rodon, only because he is still at W-S. I don't know where I'm going with this, just looking for some positive comments on Sox pitching next year. Hopefully the Sox figure out what is wrong with Erik Johnson before the start of next season, because he has been by far the biggest disappointment this year IMO. If they can somehow fix him, which is a huge question mark, it would do wonders to our rotation next year. Unfortunately, we can't count on him being anything more than competition for the #5 spot right now. The only good news is that three of our four best pitching prospects could start 2015 in AA. Rodon will probably be ready for the majors at some point next year, and it's not out of the realm of possibility for Danish or Montas to force their way into the big league as well. We still need to add a veteran #2/#3 starter this offseason, but at least we got some interesting arms coming soon.

Anyone know what Flowers' K rate is since wearing the glasses?

He'd be a solid left half of a DH platoon, but he's going to get expensive real quick and Boras is his agent. Unless he comes cheap, which is unlikely, I think we pass Alvarez.

Baez' power potential is unreal, the only thing that may hold him back is his ability to make contact against major league pitching. Don't get me wrong, he's obviously a top 10/20 prospect, but that's more based on his ceiling than floor. Guys that strike out in the 28 to 30% range in AA & AAA typically struggle in the pros. He's still so young that there's plenty of time to improve in that area, but he's far from a sure thing offensively and he doesn't have defense to fall back on either.

Cleto will have one dominant outing, we'll all get excited that he's actually been fixed, and then he'll proceed to walk 33% of the batters he faces.

Even if you gave Sierra the rest of August & September to start and he did well, would anyone here really want to bank on a two month sample and enter 2015 with him as one of our starting OFs? The way I see it, Eaton & Garcia are all but guaranteed two of the three OF spots. If we're serious about competing next year, we should be looking for an impact bat to fill that third spot, not a toolsy guy with unrealized upside. Sierra makes sense as a 4th OF and if someone were to go down with injury, that's his chance to prove himself in a greater role. I know I wouldn't want to be the GM that gave 600+ plate appearances to Sierra while trying to make the playoffs.

You always worry about the bullpen last. Yes, it needs to be addressed to some extent this offseason, but we also have bigger fish to fry if we want to be serious contenders.

QUOTE (winninguglyin83 @ Aug 3, 2014 -> 09:29 PM) He'll be 26 in October. He's taking up space on the 40-man roster. time to buff up his resume and send him on his way. This is exactly it, if he doesn't show something in AAA, he's probably one of the first guys on the chopping block when roster spots are needed.

s***'s got real in this thread.

QUOTE (Pale Sox @ Aug 3, 2014 -> 08:35 PM) The Reed/Davidson trade was a good decision. Not every good decision becomes a good trade. That's baseball. Yup, people love ripping the trade in hindsight, but no one knew Conor Gillaspie would be this good. At the time getting a top 100 prospect that played 3B for an average at best closer was the right move. Our organization was preparing to retool with a small chance of winning in 2014 and had nothing in our system to help us anytime soon at the position. While I agree with Dick Allen that some posters hyped up his Reno stats way too much, he's still an incredibly talented prospect and had to the ability to be an above average contributor at a major position of need for us. The trade was a no-brainer regardless if Davidson develops or not.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Aug 3, 2014 -> 06:32 PM) There's the man to fall on the sword after the disaster today. No corresponding move yet. What's sad is that there is not one logical callup candidate.

QUOTE (fathom @ Aug 3, 2014 -> 05:01 PM) I'm waiting for Cooper to develop a pitcher again, as Q was the last person he helped develop into a starter. The Erik Johnson debacle was very disappointing. Something is clearly wrong with Johnson, can't really blame Cooper for that. The rest comes down to a lack of talent. This bullpen is filled with retreads, at least Petricka has developed nicely.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Aug 3, 2014 -> 04:53 PM) Since Coop came back the Sox have given up a ton of runs. Thiggy-time What's your beef with Cooper?

It really sucks that Beckham will be leading off the 8th and chances are very good that Abreu comes up bat with no one on base. I can't comprehend how Gordon is still our starting 2B let alone batting 2nd.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ Aug 3, 2014 -> 04:40 PM) I can't believe people are trying to back up Dunn. And I can't believe people want him back next year. Who wants him back next year? Regardless, he is not the problem with our offense.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ Aug 3, 2014 -> 04:09 PM) This bullpen plus Beckham and Dunn makes this team look horrible. Why we haven't replaced Beckham with just about anyone else is beyond me. Semien for Beckham Wilkins for Dunn Bullpen is pretty much unfixable at this point Semien for Beckham yes, Wilkins for Dunn no. Hopefully Linstrom helps the pen, although he wasn't very good before he got injured.

QUOTE (LDF @ Aug 3, 2014 -> 08:12 AM) then signing a honorary contract with cle, does he now work for them. Can't tell if serious...

QUOTE (DirtySox @ Aug 2, 2014 -> 10:12 PM) I know it's early but I so love that draft pick. Without a question a top 10 prospect and could be our top pitching prospect as soon as next year once Rodon graduates.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Aug 2, 2014 -> 02:18 PM) Eat something light now now to get your metabolism going, then go wild when you get there. All you can eat/drink made me engorge. Awesome. Do you know how early you can get there? Is it really 90 minutes before the first pitch?

Anyone been to the Scout Seats before? I'm going for the first time tonight and figured I'd see if there's anything important I should know in advance.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Aug 2, 2014 -> 10:13 AM) Hahn was on 670 this morning and said that it was for a long targeted player. He also said that it "could" be revisited in the offseason. I'm going with Yasmani Grandal. He was in the lineup and warming up and then was scratched for no reason. Sox have been interested in the past. Yup, I also think it was Grandal, with Viciedo likely the player we would have shipped out. Even if we had to include a decent prospect, that's a deal I make 10 out of 10 times.

QUOTE (Ozzie Ball @ Aug 2, 2014 -> 08:12 AM) Yelmison Peralta for AZL Sox: 4 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 7 GO/0 FO Could be one to watch: Jay Hashop @sevenfuturehit · 10h B3: Yelmison Peralta takes over for Leesman, cranks consistent 95, freezes Day with a no-chance curve. Slinger. Quick worker. Fun to watch. $200k singing from 2012. It's really nice having the Latin American signings under Paddy finally make an impact stateside. I know most of these guys are huge long shots, but they offer infinitely more potential than the organizational types we've used in recent years to fill up large portions of our roster. The system is going to be a lot more fun to follow going forward.

From a rotation standpoint, I think we'll add one RH starter to slot before or after Quintana. As bad as Masterson has been, he seems like a guy who might take a short-term deal and hope for a rebound. That's the type of low risk move we should look into, assuming the more impactful free agent pitchers all command ridiculous contracts. I think an opening day 1-2-3-4 or Sale, Quintana, Masterson, & Danks is pretty decent. With any rebound from Justin, it's a rotation that can keep you afloat with a solid offense. As for the #5 spot, have Noesi compete with Johnson (hopefully an offseason fixes him) and see what you got. I think we should plan on Rodon assuming a rotation spot as soon as his service time needs are met so we get the extra half year out of him. Most likely he replaces Noesi/Johnson, but if one of those guys does well, then Danks is probably the odd man out. Regardless, once Rodon is up, the rotation has a chance to be very good next year, with guys like Montas & Danish likely at AA and only a year away.

Honestly, most of our "assets" will clear waivers or at least make it to a contender. Danks, Dunn, De Aza, & Beckham all should be movable in August if someone wants them. I think Viciedo is the one guy Hahn would consider moving that would likely get claimed by a non-contender. Doesn't seem like Hahn had any interest in moving Alexei.