Eminor3rd

Not bad, though. More like “inefficient.” But is that really a problem with this roster? the whole point to this rebuilding strategy is that you collect so much talent that’s underpaid (In other words, extremely efficient) you have space to actually get what you need via free agency, in which only the highest bid wins, making every win, by definition, inefficient. if they were only ever going to sign players that the rest of the market misses on, there was never any point to rebuilding in the first place. You can be an also-ran fringe wild card contender and still be willing to get free agents on “good value” no matter what your payroll is.

I’m not being sarcastic. You said the fact that Giolito would be the best starter on the White Sox means Wheeler isn’t a TOR starter lol. My point, which you haven’t addressed, is that there is no alternative within the White Sox means. THAT is why it’s a huge miss. Not because there aren’t better pitchers in the MLB, but because there’s no one else they can get. Thus, missing him means dealing with a significantly worse replacement.

I’m not sure you read my original post.

Tons and tons of fly balls and homers, even while pitching in one of the most homer suppressing parks in the MLB. Presumably that gets a lot worse at GRF.

Also, you’re saying that if Scherzer and Verlander are on the same team, one of them suddenly “isn’t a TOR starter?”

You mean the guys that get $200M contracts?

He was the 15th best pitcher in the MLB last year by fWAR. What is a TOR pitcher to you?

Wheeler was the guy. He was the only realistic shot at TOR performance that didn’t require a $160M+ contract. The other “fish in the sea” are either substantially worse or substantially more expensive. I don’t think the abject despair some are feeling is overblown if you look at the context of the market. The only way to get the pitching they need now is via trade, which would pull from a talented bun already thin system, thus hurting the teams chances, and all, again, for the sake of saving money. The team is simply not operating at the same level as the rest of the MLB. If this is how they are going to act, only blind luck will ever bring a championship

5/125 is perfectly reasonable for a 29 year old coming off of two consecutive 4+ win seasons. This franchise is a fucking joke.

All bluster

Addressed several times in subsequent posts

Yes, if they fail to address the rotation in a major way, despite several options being available for just money, which is the asset they’ve been working so hard to save to use, and directly promised they would, yes. Major disappointment.

The implication is what was wrong about what you said. I’m arguing that the Phillies are much more likely to win a free agent bidding war than the White Sox, given that they’ve done so several times in recent history, and consistently have bff run substantially higher payrolls for the past two decades. You’re trying to argue against that, I guess based on them not signing every player they were interested in last year, the same year they won the bidding to give out the richest free agent contract in the history of baseball?

They got Harper lol

I said more than the White Sox. Not the Nationals.

Phillies being involved is not good news. If they want the guy as much as the White Sox do, they’ll absolutely be willing to pay more.

A DH coming off a career year , largely driven by one great half, with Boras as his agent.

Jon Lester was a way better pitcher at the time of his signing than Bumgarner is now. He was coming off a five win season, 2.46 ERA/2.80 FIP over 219 innings. Strasburg in 2019 is a better comp for Lester in 2015.

I mean I believe literally every organization can be the one to bid high enough to make the White Sox uncomfortable.

Dude he's the GOAT and he's still under thirty. You would take the contract.

Yes, seconding this. These are looking like they’re gonna be even scarcer than originally estimated.

Who then? Keep in mind he's not a 4 win player unless he's playing SS. Projected 97 wRC+ via Steamer. And he's a one year player and costs $10M. Who ya got?

You're right about that, but I don't see a fit in the AL.

If the Reds don't end up with him, Idk what they're doing.

I don't know, maybe it's just around here. But everyone has been decrying Cashman for not beating it. Also maybe it was Boras talk. But, regardless, it seems like a similar situation in Wheeler, but seems to coming at a lot less.