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QUOTE (kitekrazy @ Jun 25, 2012 -> 11:17 AM) If I'm on the other side of the fence, I would question why Boston made this trade. It doesn't seem good for them. The Youk/Middlebrooks drama was starting to become poisonous, methinks, which factored into their haste. Beyond that, temporary utility guys that can play the OF but won't demand a starting spot when the DL empties is something the Red Sox definitely need. I think they have something like 6 OFs on the DL right now. Also, they need pitching real bad. I just don't understand how they think Stewart is the solution to that problem.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jun 25, 2012 -> 09:46 AM) "On one hand, it probably was time for him to go. The Red Sox needed to be committed to Will Middlebrooks," (Terry) Francona said. "He's a good young player, and he's proven he's a guy they can build around. "But, saying that, the White Sox are going to get more from Kevin Youkilis than the Red Sox did so far. If Youk is healthy -- and he says is -- he grinds out at-bats as good as anybody in baseball, and you can hit him second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth. He hits left-handers, he hits right-handers. It's a big pick-up for the White Sox, who have gotten no production at third base." http://www.freep.com/article/20120624/SPOR...is-from-Red-Sox Tigers' response is supposedly interest in Carlos Quentin, although the only "smoke" to this so far is Morosi blog/tweet about it 11 days ago. Really hope that the Tigers don't get him. I'd rather he go to CLE, but Damon's actually been closer to serviceable. Still, you don't let Damon stand in the way if you have the pieces to add Quentin in the next month, assuming he's still healthy. I've always liked Carlos, but he's always been SO streaky. You have to figure that some team is going to get him just in time for him to go cold, right?

I don't see any way to interpret this as a bad trade. Yes, LilliBomb endeared himself to us last year, but even if you think he's a plus utility guy, then you just gave up a plus utility guy. This is a major upside play. And Stewart is horrible. Funny side note: I clicked on the MLBTradeRumors link on Twitter last night and loked at some of the comments. There was one BoSox fan that said something along the lines of: "Ha! White Sox give up a top pitching prospect and more just to take on the corpse of Youkilis!" Someone is misinformed on Stewart, lol.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jun 22, 2012 -> 03:24 PM) Given the current rotation situation, that doesn't make much any sense. I'm assuming Axelrod will be the starter. They can't possibly think it is Stewart? Any idea on the recovery period from a sprained flexor. I'm curious if this just came up or if he had been pitching through it for a while. Didn't Stewart just get DFA'd?

Would he be better than Escobar? I don't know.

QUOTE (tonyho7476 @ Jun 22, 2012 -> 01:24 PM) On Espn Chicago...this is hard. Going with Frank first. Top 50 Sox Yeah, going back and forth between him and Lyle Mouton.

QUOTE (WHarris1 @ Jun 22, 2012 -> 11:07 AM) When they are replacing Orlando Hudson I don't really give a damn what TYPE of hitter it is so long as they can occasionally positively impact the overall lineup rather than resembling a pitcher at the dish. This is the important point. Hudson is playing abysmally both offensively and defensively. Even a 3B that is just a tick BELOW average on both sides of the diamond will be an upgrade. What are you thinking/referencing when you say a team "can't have two guys striking out a total of 400 times?" To me, it just comes down to someone providing positive value at all to replace someone providing negative value.

QUOTE (pittshoganerkoff @ Jun 22, 2012 -> 11:08 AM) One or two games a season. Interesting. I typically get to 3-5 per season (two so far this year), and yet I always feel like all the outcries of attendance (from KW, from the media, and from other fans) are directed at me. Maybe I'm not part of the problem, after all?

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Jun 22, 2012 -> 02:54 AM) Youk is a bad idea. Old broken down, gets paid huge money and unproductive. Anyone who wants him isn't thinking ahead . Konerko and AJ ,both still very productive ,aren't getting any younger. Giving up any youth for anyone old is beyond ridiculous. We just have to go with what we have and keep rebuilding. If Sox fans can't get behind a team that has a plan but isn't instantly successful, has young and exciting players then it'll be very hard to continue the rebuilding process . Get your asses out to the park if its not too much of a financial burden. You don't have to buy food there. It's fun family entertainment. It's a nice ball park . It's a good environment for kids if you show up early and want to hit the kids zone. The emphasis shouldn't be on winning to go to a game but to have a little fun with the family or friends. Brooks Boyer if you're listening stress the fun things about U.S. Cellular and creating memories with your family, even tell people to brown bag their lunch or dinner. Have more on field activities and advertise the heck out of them. It shouldn't be about appreciating the game but appreciating the memories with those close to you. Just out of curiosity, how often do you think a typical fan "should" go to games?

QUOTE (Soxfest @ Jun 18, 2012 -> 10:57 PM) First place may be history soon. And it won't have anything to do with Danks not pitching.

Have you guys looked at Middlebrooks' stats? First glance looks great: .303/.340/.523? Sure! Second glance: 25% K rate, 5% BB rate, .367 BABIP, -3.8 Fld in just 37 games. This guy is poised to come crashing down HARD. I don't want him for what he would cost. http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playe...amp;position=3B

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Jun 20, 2012 -> 05:14 PM) It would be nice. However, I do not think we have the bullets. If you were Josh Byrnes, what would you want in return? If I'm Byrnes, I want someone like Mitchell as a centerpiece, Quintana because he will kill in Petco, Nate Jones, and a lower end pitcher. If I'm KW, I try to avoid giving up Jones, but if worse comes to worse, I make this deal, possibly asking for a Stewart-like pitcher back for the sake of ML depth. Headley has less than 4 years of service time and is criminally underrated because of his team and park.

We gotsta get Chase Headley somehow. It's a perfect match. I just hope we have the bullets.

I honestly would rather watch on TV. I love going to the game every once and a while, but it's just not the best way to consume baseball when your chief concern is what is happening on the field. Unless you're very wealthy and can regularly afford tickets in the first few rows around the plate, going to a game is an event, not a hobby.

QUOTE (Noonskadoodle @ Jun 20, 2012 -> 11:30 AM) Really? Because I'm not seeing a lot of options out there. What would you do Mr. GM? Get ANY major league third baseman from ANY team. That's what I'd do. Because that's all it would take to upgrade.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jun 17, 2012 -> 10:16 AM) Dunno...they could always put Figgins there so that he is actually playing. At this point for them, they should be trying to keep the "core" guys as you mentioned, and trading any other assets where they think they will show a net improvement in the next several years on. What they put on the field this year should not particularly matter. I'm sure they'd want Viciedo. I'd counter with Mitchell, throw in Morel, then you'd probably have to give up one of the SP spects we just got this offseason, and maybe even low-level offensive player. Wait, what? EDIT: Nevermind, somehow I read that wrong and thought you were suggesting that package for Figgins.

QUOTE (fathom @ Jun 6, 2012 -> 09:48 PM) He's only allowed one run all year prior to the 9th inning or later of a game. He can be a decent long reliever for this team right now. His biggest issue is that 1 out of every 10 righties he's faced this year has hit a homer off of him (5-50). He has a 96% strand rate. Do you know how insanely lucky that is? He's been worth -0.3 WAR this year.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jun 6, 2012 -> 09:47 PM) In all fairness, the last two games, you could say that about most of the players on our roster. Lillibridge, Fukudome, Ohman, Stewart, Hudson, etc. Viciedo's ice cold, Beckham's fallen off again, no Konerko...we're scuffling, but it's only 2 games. And we're still in first place. And Detroit's in much worse shape than we are. Although the mysterious home woes continue again. I'm not talking about the last two games. When has Hector Santiago been good? What has he had one or two good outings?

Hector Santiago f***ing sucks

QUOTE (PolishPrince34 @ Jun 5, 2012 -> 08:23 AM) Keith Law mentions Keon Barnum one of the worst picks of last night. Just one man's opinion. This pick was definitely a reach, but I like White Sox change in philosophy going after some high ceiling high school players. It will be interesting to see if they pick any more high school players in the 2nd or 3rd round. After the 3rd round majority of solid high school picks will be looking to enroll in college because the new financial hit. High school players are the strength of this draft, eventhough it's one the weakest drafts in years. Chicago White Sox The pick: Keon Barnum at No. 48 Summary: I'm guessing Barnum, a big kid with a terrible habit of swinging and missing, was off a lot of draft boards as unsignable for worth, meaning he wasn't a strong enough prospect to merit buying him out of a commitment to Miami. They got a steal at No. 13 with Courtney Hawkins, but Barnum had me and many scouts scratching our heads.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 4, 2012 -> 11:27 PM) The baseball draft bores me. Call me in 5 years and we'll know if this guy can play. C.J. Henry went No. 15 overall to the Yankees one year and quite possibly might be the worst player in organized baseball history. It only took him 3-4 years to leave the game completely. He was "five tool." Luke Hochevar No. 1 overall? My god. Wow, what a totally unnecessary downer.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jun 4, 2012 -> 06:25 PM) Twins went for the more talented guy. Great move for them. I thought they'd take the guy with a high ceiling (not as high) but the lower floor. I agree, good move. They know they're further away than Appel, who I think goes to a team that wants to use him next year.

6 central. And I agree regarding Heaney. I'd like them to choose Stroman, a guy with big time stuff that is overlooked because he's short. With Stroman, I can dream on Tim Lincecum, but with Heaney, I can only dream on John Danks.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jun 4, 2012 -> 05:13 PM) I agree with that, but at the same time, that strategy has long excited. However, it was more a matter of internal budgets. Now, everyone is on a level playing field and I for one am very happy about that. Let the best scouts/front offices/coaches (to develop said players) win. Not who has the biggest budget/resources to spend on the draft. I like it, as a Sox fan, because Reinsdorf wasn't going to spend either way. But before this deal, there existed a real opportunity for smaller market teams to spend big on the draft where their dollars would go much further than on the free agent market -- and in fact, teams like the Pirates, Blue Jays, and Rays did just that. In a lot of ways, I actually think that this situation favors the big markets by eliminating and opportunity for the others to gain a competitive advantage.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jun 4, 2012 -> 05:00 PM) Think of it this way, I'm a #1 pick and the slot is 1.5M. If I'm going to pay $1.5M for that pick and don't sign it, nothing lost. All I lose is what was slotted there. On the flipside, if I was strategically going overslot at that pick (say spending $2M), then that could hurt me, since I probably went underslot in other areas. However, that is strategy and whose to say you don't hedge that bet by grabbing another guy in the draft who you have cushion for if you do think that is a possibility (so you can go overslot on that guy if you miss out on your projection here). Say your sandwich pick signs for $300k above slot. You didn't plan it that way, but that's how it worked out. Some later picks sign at slot or are unsigned still. Now your first round pick demands to be X overslot, forcing you to choose between signing him and some other guys go later in the draft. He has extra leverage because if you DON'T sign him, you lose his slot money and have to pay a penalty because you are already over-budget. This is the first time there's been any discernable cost associated with NOT signing a guy. Now you have to sacrifice either way.