Chicago White Sox

His xwOBACON dropped from three straight years in the .370 to .380 range to .330. Could be a sample size issue, but that’s pretty alarming at his age.

Brantley just scares me a bit. Declining quality of contact (per StatCast) in his age 33 is a big red flag to me. Don’t get me wrong, Joc would be a risk given how bad his 2020 season was, but he’s 28 years old, was dealing with some personal last year I believe, and was tremendous against RHP in 2018 & 2019. At a small dollar amount I’ll take my chances and look for an upgrade at the deadline if it doesn’t work out.

I’m really not sure Brantley can play a solid RF is the problem, but perhaps I’m wrong. Either guy makes sense theoretically on a one year deal. I’d save my big dollars for pitching whether that comes via free agency or a trade.

Well that’s fantastic then!

2 1/2 out of three ain’t bad!

There is that service time manipulation we all love!

How many young arms who come up with curveballs as their best secondary pitch end up abandoning when they join the Sox? That alone should have been a major red flag to Hahn and the player development guys.

Joc makes way too much sense as part of a RF platoon with Engel if you plan to prioritize pitching this offseason. Can probably be had on a 1/$10M deal or less given the current economic environment.

The lack of development is definitely a big reason for the change. Rodon & Lopez are probably lost causes at this point, but there is still time for Cease to recover but a change was vastly needed.

If you’re Rick Hahn and have gotten worst in league production out of RF two years in a row do you go out and give Mazara another major opportunity?

I’m catching up in real-time here, but there is no doubt in my mind that Cooper has been slow to adapt to analytics / modern pitching practices. You can only read so many articles that discuss all the things Zaleski & Teaford are doing in the minors before you realize Cooper is well behind the curve. And most importantly, the lack of development from so many young, talented pitchers simply reaffirms that point. The bullpen management may have cost Ricky his job, but I think Cooper lost his job due to much bigger issues.

Truer words have never been spoken

Wow, this would be amazing!!

While I want nothing to do with Hinch, I’m very optimistic this will be an external hire given they are actually doing a real hiring process and not just taking the first guy they saw like with Ricky.

Why is a player development guy the direction they want to head? They need a guy who has actually managed games, not someone who will require to learn on the job.

Bold Prediction: Don Cooper is retiring and Matt Zaleski is named pitching coach.

Why would they promote their player development guy to be manager of all people?

As much as I despise Ricky’s in-game decision-making, I’d probably be more excited about a Cooper exit at this point. It’s a time for a new voice at the major league level.

Be a young left-handed pitcher who throws hard and has an elite slider? That’s easily worth a $1M to a rebuilding club who already has a low payroll.

Good: Crotchet 100% healthy Ricky is being fired ”Team will be aggressive coming off playoff appearance” Bad: Crotchet needs TJS Ricky is being extended ”Team will need to be conservative in wake of COVID”

You actually think a rebuilding team won’t offer Rodon a guaranteed 1/$1M contract?

Rodon is going to get a major league deal from someone.

Pretty sure they are staying at 26

One thing worth pointing out is that we have six guys under salary for the 2023 season at a total cost of $70M. That’s Grandal, Moncada, Timmy, Eloy, Robert, & Bummer. That doesn’t include Giolito who will be in his 3rd year of arbitration, which could push that total close to $90M for just seven guys. Even if Reinsdorf goes all-in with say a $170M payroll, that only leaves $80M for the remaining 19 spots. Point is the Sox will not give up on a cheap young talent like Cease very quickly because we’ll need several guys like him to develop into useful pieces to offset the rising costs of the core. I also wouldn’t expect a sizable long-term investment in RF this offseason. A stopgap like Joc or Brantley is far more likely with resources being allocated towards more near term pitching needs while Cease, Dunning, Kopech, & Crotchet continue to develop in the majors or AAA.

I just don’t think it’s an idea would exploring as there is literally zero chance the Sox go through the gymnastics of moving Grandal just to sign Realmuto. The Sox may add a better backup than Collins, but the starting catching position is not a problem for us and will not be a priority for us this offseason. A TOR starter, a high leverage reliever, a veteran swingman, and a RF upgrade are where Hahn will spend his time and effort.