Chicago White Sox

Sorry, at the airport and unable to watch, but was worried you meant something new.

Kopech out of shape…WTF

Kopech?

I think if we had a competent GM heading into the off-season and allowed him to hire his own manager and install a different offensive philosophy we’d probably be in 1st place in the Central right now. Hahn basically lit $20M on fire when he signed Leury, Harrison, Kelly, & Velesquez this off-season. We’d be better off with four replacement players covering their roles and using that $20M on say Schwarber. And yes, I get that doesn’t address RF, but at least we would of had a competent LH power bat instead of relying on an unproven Sheets to be that guy. And with Schwarber in toe, the $15M that went towards Kimbrel’s option and eventually Pollock’s salary could have been repurposed. I won’t blame Hahn for not foreseeing a huge fall-off offensively, but our pro scouts should have known if the dude could play RF or not. And finally, any competent GM would have acquired more pitching depth than what we started the season with. It’s incredible this was our “priority area” coming out of the lockout and all we added was a lottery ticket swingman and a reliever who would miss at least four weeks and then be restricted for another eight. The benefits of a different manager are obvious, so I won’t spend too much time on that. But to be 100% candid, we are getting the worst of both worlds in Tony, who is a lifeless, uncharismatic, out-of-touch leader who also sucks at lineup construction, roster management, and in-game decision-making. Hiring him is probably the biggest embarrassment in franchise history and we literally threw away a World Series. No joke, I’d rather see Pito as a player manager than watch another game of Tony in charge. Tony is like a -6 fWAR manager this season…he’s literal proof that the theory “managers don’t matter” is untrue when they are this incompetent. Even with Hahn’s shit off-season and a plethora of injuries, we’re probably in the thick of things with any other possible manager. Finally, I still believe there is an offensive core in place that should form the bulk of a quality offense when healthy. Yes, more LH hitting is needed, but there is zero reason for the lack of HRs we’re seeing this year. Outside of 2B, we have guys with enough raw power to hit 20 HRs at every other spot and yet will be lucky to finish with two 20 HR hitters. Without question, there is something fundamentally broken with this offense and it really seems like Menechino is a big part of that. I know, I know…hitting coaches don’t matter, but I think that’s utter bullshit. We see other modern organizations change approaches, stances, swing planes, etc. and see drastically different results. When an entire offense is underperforming, it’s clear that something philosophical is at play and we know Frank preaches an approach that is contact/groundball/opposite field heavy. I have zero doubt that with a more modern hitting coach and organizational philosophy we’d have significantly more HRs and ultimately more runs.

I’ll always cheer for the Sox while they still have a shot, but it’s bittersweet to support this shit show of an organization.

? Menechino!

? Tony

Runner on third with one out and we can’t get the tying run in with our best hitter at the plate. Officially time to start selling.

Absolutely embarrassing Jose

Oh god, is that Menechino giving Eloy hitting advice after a successful rehabilitation in Charlotte?!?

HUGE

We got frame jobbed there

What did he do this time?

Holy shit we’ve been two hit by the god damn fucking Tigers. If they don’t come back in the 9th, it’s time to clean house.

Yup, might need to make an exception this year.

Because they may feel he won’t turn it around in NYC. And let’s not forgot Pollock was a 3 win OF last year, unfortunately his inability to play a quality RF makes him an imperfect fit for us even if he returns to form offensively.

Exactly, which is why Lowe would be an interesting acquisition despite a down season and his current back issue. He probably isn’t even available and the price would likely be too high even if he was, but you just never know with the Rays.

That’s probably true, but shooting for ways to add a left-handed 2B.

Those HR numbers are embarrassing

Also, don’t see Colas getting moved unless he’s the headliner for someone like Bryan Ramos. Hahn has struggled to acquire a quality left-handed power bat in recent years (outside of Grandal) and our minor league OF depth isn’t exactly super promising at the moment. I think Montgomery, Colas, & Vera are more or less untouchables, with guys like Sosa & Ramos more likely to be moved.

Trade Pollock for Gallo Trade Sosa+ for Brandon Lowe Tim Anderson, SS Andrew Vaughn, DH Brandon Lowe, 2B* Jose Abreu, 1B Eloy Jimenez, LF Joey Gallo, RF* Luis Robert, CF Yasmani Grandal, C# Yoan Moncada, 3B# May not be realistic, but would certainly be a more powerful lineup against RHP

What?

Don’t forget those GIDP’s!

What?

Pretty wild to be bottom 5 in both OBP in ISO. And that’s with Jose posting a career best 12.0% walk rate! Sox should be proud of this accomplishment.