Chicago White Sox

The challenge with extending Madrigal right now is it’s hard to value him given his unique skillset and the uncertainty of how the power will develop. I have no doubt there is a number that the Sox would be willing to offer right now, but Madrigal may not like that figure and bet on himself a bit to prove he’s more than just a slap hitter at the major league level.

Exactly.

The Wheeler hate by some on this board is astounding to me.

I really, really hope the Indians don’t trade Lindor. He’s 100% gone in two years and we don’t need the Indians getting valuable pieces for him that can help them over the next seven years.

You think they’re going to play Abreu & Vaughn only 110 games each in 2021? That is not happening buddy. Collins can have a role going forward, but he’s got to be able to stick behind the plate for it to be meaningful at all. There simply won’t be a ton of playing at those two spots and Grandal will certainly get a piece of the action when he’s not catching.

Lol...you have no fucking clue what you are talking about. I actually like Collins and believe he could become a good hitter. His bad stretch with the White Sox last summer has no bearing on my thought process. The reality is Collins has a questionable hit tool and this has been the case since he was drafted. Maybe the swing changes ultimately work, maybe they don’t. Either way, the DH spot won’t be available for him come 2021. So if my options are adding a guy who was 30% above league average as a hitter last year on a one year deal or hand considerable at-bats to a guy with question marks that has no obvious path to being a regular one year from now, I know which route I’m going.

Two years.

Where in the world do you think Collins plays in 2021? I know many here will say “Vaughn is just a prospect”, but odds are the kid will be ready by OD 2021.

I fully expect a polished college arm in the 1st who can either help us in a few years or quickly used as trade bait. It really is nice having our 2nd round pick and I hope they snag another prep guy in next year’s draft.

You really don’t seem to understand the impact that the juiced ball had on the International League this past year. I mean, Ryan Goins had a .937 OPS in 300+ at-bats for the Knights if that gives you a sense of how ridiculous the offensive environment. I’m not saying Collins had a bad year, but it wasn’t the elite offensive season you are thinking it was. That being said, he did do better after the swing changes so there is reason for optimism.

The difference is Encarnacion is actually still a damn good hitter and those other guys suck.

Now that we’ve signed Keuchel very little chance they trade Vaughn. More likely it will be some combo of our 2020 1st rounder, Dunning, Stiever, Dalquist, & Thompson that will help us shore up any needs come next offseason.

They will add an infielder to be the interim starter. Mendick will be the reserve infielder to start the season and then likely AAA depth once Madrigal is called up.

What in the fuck? Encarnacion posted an .875 OPS / 129 wRC+ last year which helped him put up 2.5 fWAR in just 109 games. We was a better hitter than Jose last year and we just give him $50M. EE would be an astute signing as his market is very limited and we should be able to get him on a reasonable one year deal.

Agreed. EE for DH is a no brainer. And if we aren’t in the thick of things come July, he gets moved for whatever and we can give Collins more playing time at DH assuming he’s still around. I actually like Collins but using him as a depth piece would be smart to start the season. And if he forces more playing time great, but he’s not a guy who should automatically be handed a starting role.

Just a gut feeling, but I really think this happens and before Christmas. The Sox saw the impact that Nelson Cruz had on the Twins last year and knows what happened when we had to run trash through the DH spot.

You should not be grouping EE with Ozuna & Castellanos. EE is a one year bridge to Vaughn, those other guys are serious multi-year commitments that either block Vaughn or lock up RF for the near-term. By going with Mazara in RF, they need more stability at DH if they’re serious about competing next year. If that means putting Collins in a backup catcher / DH insurance policy role then so be it and I say that as someone who likes Collins. I was all for a rotating DH spot amongst Grandal, McCann, & Collins, but resigning Abreu to a three year deal makes that experiment somewhat pointless with Vaughn right around the corner.

They aren’t signing EE to be a weak-side platoon DH. He’d be the primary DH. Short of injury, Collins would looking at around 40 starts at catcher (assuming they trade McCann) and probably another 20 or so starts at 1B / DH.

Vaughn will be our 1B in 2021 and Abreu our DH. Collins has no spot long term unless he proves he handle the backup catcher role. Signing EE to a one year deal doesn’t change any of that.

I mean you trade him for value, whether that be a reliever or minor league depth. A lot of teams could use catching help right about now.

100% agree. Add EE to be the primary DH and give Collins his shot as the backup catcher. Grandal should still be able to get some time at DH & 1B against tough RHP.

Sure, but the dude averaged nearly 70 appearances from 2015 to 2018. If he returns back to form or is even the guy we saw in September, Ricky will be using him a ton.

How do you fit JDM in with Abreu & Vaughn locking up 1B & DH for 2021 & 2022? This is why EE makes so much sense because he’ll only be a one year commitment.

I’d wager that Herrera’s 2021 option becomes guaranteed. He just needs 55 appearances next for that to happen (for reference he had 57 last year despite battling injuries).

Yup