oldsox

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 24, 2014 -> 04:24 PM) 2020 is more realistic. I bet you're wrong on this one, Southsider. Not saying it will be as early as 2015, but if he comes out in 2020, that means he will have been under Sox control for 7 years. That's a long time for a ROY. If he is that good, his cream will rise to the top well before next decade. That said, I bet we'll have a good idea if he is a great prospect by the end of 2015. I sure hope he plays somewhere this year.

I disagree with you and Wite on Micah Johnson. He put up great numbers as a 22 year old. Okay, he only hit .238 at B'ham at end of season in 21 AB's. So what? One extra hit would have added almost 50 points to his BA there. Plus, he did well in AFL. He stole 87 bases in 2013. I have never seen him play, but he's gotta be one of the most exciting Sox non-pitching prospects in a long time. Some say he is too old (he just turned 23 last month), but that's what happens when you go to college-- you get older. We have three great middle infield prospects in Micah, Semien, and Sanchez. Don't trade them -- yet. Let's see how they do in the next few months.

FWIW, I hear Ubaldo is looking at KC, Toronto, and Seattle with the Indians still having an ouside shot at him. I hope it stays that way, even though he pitched pretty well down the stretch. Rockies are not a player here.

I wonder if gov. Cuomo will accept Tanaka as a New Yorker?

MLB Network keeps talking about the smaller ball in Japan. I did not know this until the Tanaka deal came up. I have heard in the past that they have larger seams than MLB. Wonder if size counts.

I wonder if we could have gotten Castro for Addison Reed? Just wondering. Does anyone here know if Hahn shopped Reed at all, or did he quickly close on the deal when Davidson was made available?

I had a bunch of guys over for the football games yesterday, including a couple of zealots from Boston. The word they got from their contacts there is Tanaka will go to either Scrubs, Yanks, or Dodgers. All FWIW. Decision Day is Friday.

Frank was just on The Jim Rome Show on Showtime. Good interview, talked a lot about steroids, mentioning McGuire, Bonds, Clemens, Sosa. He said those guys made a choice, giving up the HOF for stats. Youngest guy in the Hall.

I always liked Ethier, but in 3-4 yrs he will be an albatross, getting in the way of developing some unknown young OF. Still, trading Dunn for Ethier straight up solves the money problem mentioned above. Dodgers probably have a couple of young outfielders who will be ready for roster spots in 2015, too, so they might be motivated. Geez, if Sox were a legitimate contender in 2014 (and they might be if Abreu really hits), it would improve the DH spot as well as OF depth.

He might be a good coach/manager some day.

If Sox sign Tanaka, how much does the attendance increase? 15 starts at home probably means at least 5000 extra per game, especially if he does well.

You guys did not include Micah Johnson. I would get him in the Top Ten somewhere.

Nice article on Carlos Sanchez on the White Sox Home Page. After his great winter league season in Venezuela, I sure hope we don't trade this kid.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jan 13, 2014 -> 03:37 PM) Tanaka's honey prefers the west coast. All the more reason to go 2000 miles inland.

I hope Abreu does not think that he has to be a dead pull hitter from day one. Hit it to the opposite field for power like Frank did in his early years and Konerko did in his later years.

QUOTE (Lillian @ Jan 12, 2014 -> 07:04 AM) Anyone care to conjecture just how the Sox front office might have pitched him? What else, besides their bright future, a great city, less media scrutiny and thus less pressure, and an opt out clause in the contract? Weather?

QUOTE (Real @ Jan 11, 2014 -> 06:19 AM) [uPDATE @ 2:58pm] According to a tweet by the San Francisco Chronicle's John Shea, Tanaka's top three cities are Los Angeles, New York, and Boston. Same report on MLB Network late last night.

A year ago they traded a pitcher not as good as Price (Shields) to KC for the pick of the litter of prospects not from Cuba (Will Myers). Not sure how Jennings got into the mix, has Tampa put him on the market?

There was a time when it looked like Sox had very little chance of landing Abreu.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:34 PM) I guess I just value ceiling more than most people. I also don't think Jose Abreu should be considered a prospect though. The White Sox don't either. Abreu is not mentioned on the web site's top twenty. But since he has never played in the minors or majors, it seems as if he shouild be considered a prospect, unless there is an age qualifier.

The Colorado Rockies beat writer, Troy Renck, put Frank on his ballot.

I noticed the other day that the White Sox Web Site has pitcher Erik Surkamp as its # 11 prospect. No one here has him listed anywhere. Not sure why Sox have him listed so high.

With every day that goes by, I like the Reed/Davidson trade less and less. I want to see him play.

QUOTE (Vance Law @ Dec 30, 2013 -> 09:13 PM) Perhaps, but a) for how long? and b) what's the difference? a) What percentage likelihood do you think there is that Dunn finishes the 2014 season with the Sox? I'd put it at close to zero he's here past the all-star break. So we're talking about half a season where there's some shuffling of 4 outfielders before a roster spot opens up. As I've mentioned before, the Dodgers and Yankees sure see this set-up as feasible and with some much higher profile outfielders. b) I see zero reason for Davidson (or Semien for that matter) to start the season in the big leagues. I see zero downside to having "too many players" (aka options) in the middle of a roster turnaround like this. I see no necessary positional changes prior to opening day other than perhaps a catcher upgrade. If a very good deal comes along for one of our guys, that's great. If it doesn't, there's no downside in waiting until some other team (or our own) has a need due to injury. Dunn is gone by midseason. Konerko's gone at the end of the year and I really can't see Keppinger playing the 2015 season with the Sox- if he hasn't improved his value before then I really assume he'll be dumped on whoever takes him. That's 3 spots I fully expect to open up in the next calendar year, along with Gillaspie I bet, once some team develops a need for a 3Bman/platoon partner. No need to hustle De Aza out the door. Vance, if Davidson is not ready for prime time, then we paid too much for him, IMO. I look for Addison Reed to have a big year for D-backs.

Someone posted earlier that he thinks Davidson will start season at Charlotte. I can't see it, unless Davidson is really horrible in ST. I really liked Reed, but I bet he is glad to get away from Giambi.