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QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 27, 2014 -> 02:58 PM) Basically just right there it looks like you're talking about 5+ different free agent signings led by a top of the rotation starter. Do you see why this is getting really rough? And just the guys you listed right there don't include the DH you want and that leaves Viciedo/De Aza as a weakness in the corner OF. If you want to go from a below .500 team to a playoff contender, you got to make moves. Has it ever not been the case? What's the alternative? Wait on your prospects like the Pirates and Royals did? If there's ever a time to make moves, it's this off season. We have ~$55-60 mil committed (including pre-arb, and arb guys in Flowers, Jones, and Noesi) next year. We won't have to risk losing a pick in signing guys, and division is as wide open as ever. With the money coming off the books, it's almost guaranteed we will spend money somewhere, I don't think the guys I am proposing is considered asking for the moon, considering it's 1 starter, 2 bullpen arms, part time DH, and 2 bench players who could be sourced from the farm.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 27, 2014 -> 02:09 PM) Worth noting a couple instant problems. Delmon Young has only 200 plate appearances this season, and Adam Dunn is already an above average DH offensively. The reason Young is worth more in WAR than Dunn is that Dunn is a slightly worse fielder. He's also been worse than Dunn the last 2 seasons. Decent chance if you gave him 400+ PA's as your DH that you're talking about a negative value player there as well. Sergio Romo + Andrew Miller this year = 1.4 WAR, not 3. That just proves that you can't look at WAR by itself, because on paper, Young is a +1 WAR player and Dunn is at 0 WAR. The Red Sox, for instance, has a higher team WAR than the Yankees, but they are 11 games worse. Regardless of WAR, I like the prospects of Delmon Young at DH because he historically does very well vs lefties, and you can have him for cheap. Platoon him with Wilkins or whoever, we should have solid offense and also defensive flexibility compared to just Dunn and Konerko, at a fraction of the cost. Romo is having a bad season, but is historically a 1+ WAR player, I think this is the time to get him for cheap. Generally if you spend $5 mil+ for a reliever, you'd expect quality one. I am also underestimating the improvement the collective group of Eaton, Garcia, Sanchez, and Semien is going to make, but you get the point. If we can get a #2 or 3 starter, a couple of quality bullpen arms, solidify our bench, and the young guys take a step forward next year, there's no reason this team can't compete next year.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 27, 2014 -> 12:57 PM) The only way it makes sense to me to go after a guy like Shields, especially given his age, is if John Danks is cleared out of the rotation or there is some other trade that clears a spot. I continue to say that spending $15 million+ on the upgrade from Noesi to Shields is a drop in the bucket move with as many other issues as this team has. It picks up ~2 WAR. This team is >> 2 WAR from being competitive for a playoff spot. I think WAR is a nice tool to evaluate an individual player, but I don't think it directly correlates to actual wins. But if you want to measure next year's potential team by WAR, we can Replacing Carrol with Shields = +3 WAR Replacing blackholes in bullpen with let's say Andrew Miller and Sergio Romo = +3 WAR Replacing Dunn (0 WAR) with league average DH, let's say Delmon Young = +1 WAR Replacing Leury Garcia, Paul Konerko (- 2 WAR) with let's say Bonifacio or Saladio and Wilkins = +2 WAR (assuming they will be 0 WAR players) Having a full year of Sanchez, Eaton, Avi, Semien, over Beckham, De Aza, and Viciedo, I am projecting + 1.5 WAR This currently a 18.5 WAR team according to Fangraphs, + 11.5 WAR increase, will put us ahead of teams like the Braves, Cardinals, Brewers, and Mariners.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Aug 27, 2014 -> 12:42 PM) If Rodon is deserving of a spot in the rotation, Rodon will have a spot in the rotation. C'mon man. There is no team in baseball with too much starting pitching. And no team in baseball keeps Carlos Rodon in the minors if he is ready because of guys like Hector Noesi or other mediocrity like him. Just name one season with one team where a spot wouldn't be open for Rodon if he was ready. The Sox have Sale, Q, and then a bunch of guys who can't hold Rodon's jock. Any team that banks on having 5 starters all year long is probably in for a long season. I think the 2005 White Sox tied a record with 6. This. If we want to compete, then let Rodon earn a spot, instead of not signing another quality starter and roll both Carrol and Noesi out there and hope Rodon will be ready at some point.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 27, 2014 -> 12:35 PM) That's fine. But you can't rely on those things to happen in order to clear Rodon a rotation spot unless you're willing to keep him in the minors the whole year if they don't happen. If Noesi has a solid start and shows he's learning how to be a better starter, do you keep Rodon in AAA the full year? If Sale doesn't get hurt, do you keep Rodon in AAA the whole year? If the goal is for Rodon to enter the rotation you can't have him in a place where you're counting on one of those things to happen. Those issues are an argument that we should have a backup plan other than Rodon if the goal is for him to be in the big leagues early next season. My original premise is I believe Hahn should pull the trigger this off season and turn this team into a playoff contender, and I believe it doesn't require a complete overhaul. Though I believe a solid number 2 starter, i.e. Jame Shields, is a must (I still believe Q is more of a 3 than 2). If our goal is to be competitive, we can't center our roster moves around when or how exactly to bring up Rodon. If we believe he's ready to start next year, then maybe we do not need to sign a starter. However, if he needs some fine tuning in the minors, then yes, this team absolutely needs to bring in a guy like Shields. We will bring up Rodon when he's ready and when there is a need for him on the team. And as I said, I think it's highly likely we will be able to insert him into the rotation one way or another. And if he isn't ready to start next year and we do not have a open spot for him mid season, I am completely fine with leaving him down in the minors until September and bring him up to fortify our bullpen for a playoff run. If we want to compete next year, we can't save a roster spot for Rodon and wait till he's ready to take it.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 26, 2014 -> 04:35 PM) Not if we want a rotation spot for Carlos Rodon early next year. If Rodon is in the minors for all of 2015 fine, but if Noesi was just doing what he was doing right now for the Sox next year, replacing him with a rookie would be something of a "white flag" move, a step backwards mid-season. It's not a stretch to imagine Noesi struggling next year. I wouldn't also bank on the other 4 starters staying healthy the entire year, especially Sale.

QUOTE (Sox Fan In Husker Land @ Aug 27, 2014 -> 07:40 AM) Since July 4th at AAA Charlotte, Semien has the following line in 50 games: .317 AVG .431 OBP .562 SLG .245 ISO .387 BABIP 225 PA 183 AB 58 H 35 BB 33 K 41 R 14 2B 2 3B 9 HR 33 RBI 6 SB 0 CS 4 HBP 3 SF I am pretty sure his BABIP is .340, not .387 I dont think this is a fluke stretch by any means. With guys like him and Micah, it take a while for them to adjust to the league, and once they adjust, they will stay consistent and rarely go on extended slumps.

QUOTE (knightni @ Aug 26, 2014 -> 03:25 PM) I'm not sure if he's a good enough catcher or a powerful enough DH. His ISO is around .240 both last year and this year. Consider Abreu's current ISO is at .290 and Dunn is at .200, he's got plenty of pop. He's going into Arb next year and isn't eligible for FA until 2019, so I think he's gotta cost us at least Montas or Danish +

Buddy Bell is smarter than we are after all

QUOTE (raBBit @ Aug 26, 2014 -> 03:04 PM) You're right, and I would probably put the number at 40-50 but closer to 40. As far as Hansen, he's never been able to keep his velocity in the mid-90's and that probably led to the Sox moving him into the pen. I hope I'm wrong but it's a lot harder for guys who are 6'8" to repeat their mechanics and Hansen hasn't been able to do that. I would like to see more reports on his velocity though but everything I've found would be considered a detriment to his future. I read that his FB is around low to mid 90's when coming out of pen, and slider has flashed plus. I don't think it's too much of a stretch to see him getting a shot in the big league bullpen in the next year or two.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 26, 2014 -> 02:14 PM) I'm ok with that, but now you've made this a hypothetical player which could be anyone. Attach a name and I'll be more willing to reply. James Shields was the name I noted who has come up several times. Next year he's not a strong upgrade over Noesi and he turns 33 this December. He's the definition of a "win now" player and it's just crazy to sign him if you aren't sure you have a fully stocked roster that season. Are you willing to say that James Shields at age 34 is going to be the last piece? I'll give a counterexample myself. If the White Sox decided that they wanted an almost full time LH hitting DH, Pablo Sandoval hits free agency this year and he just turned 28. If you locked him up for 5 years, then even if the team wasn't competitive this year, you'd still have his rights the next few years and there's no reason to predict him falling apart at age 29. But, that throws out all the other issues. Do we know for sure we'll need a DH? Do we want to commit money to that position and risk having a bigger need crop up in the next season? Are there other options available the next offseason we could target if we saved that money instead? And so on. I think we would be comparing Shields vs. Carroll here, not Noesi. Preferably, we like to target a pitcher we can lock up long term and would perform at or above expectation for the duration of the contract. But the Sox also have 4 top pitching prospects who are a couple years away from making the big leagues (granted, not all of them will work out), so settling for a stop gap solution like Shields isn't the worst idea. I think their main focus should be fielding a competitive team next year (can't afford 3 losing years in a row and another terrible year in attendance), and from what we are seeing from the Royals and Indians, you don't need a star studded team to compete in this division. Given that, I do not think we need to make huge changes to become a better, and more competitive team next year. A full year of Eaton, Garcia, Sanchez and Semien would be huge upgrades alone over Beckham, ADA and Viciedo. Add a #2 starter and 2 good bullpen arms, this team could easily be above .500

QUOTE (raBBit @ Aug 26, 2014 -> 01:04 PM) Why wouldn't they just move Semien to LF and keep Gillaspie at 3B? Regardless, all of these positions are not going to be filled internally. They are going to bring in some combination of power and LH hitter(s). If we don't land a guy like Melky Cabrera or Rasmus, I actually hope Semien would be our starting LF next season.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 26, 2014 -> 01:35 PM) OK, if Anderson doesn't qualify... and we know Montas is going because Bell said he is, I believe... I'd go with: Montas Anderson Bassitt Snodgress Ravelo Coats Also very possible: Kyle Hansen, if he's healthy by then. If Snodgress goes to Chicago, that makes Hansen a strong candidate. I don't think they send any SP's that pitched the full year. If they do, Recchia is a possibility, so is Bucciferro. You have to pick one of Anderson, Montas and Coats, since all were below AA as of 8/1 I'd would go with: Bassitt Snodgress Hansen/Olacio (interesting both were moved up to AA just before 8/1, meaning they might have had AFL in plans for them) Anderson Trayce Thompson Nieto

There are 6 players who are having good years at Triple A and deserves to the September call ups: Rodon, Mitchell, Semien, Wilkins, Taylor and Phegley. Of the 6, Rodon, Wilkins and Taylor are not on the 40 man roster. I'd think Davidson gets the call as well given our investment in him. It'd be interesting to see who actually gets called up in a week. P.S. I would like to give credit to the FO for sticking with Mitchell and not letting him go when all hope was lost. It seems like he's at least capable of having a role on a big league team.

Semien looks like he's upset he was passed for the promotion. Unfortunately for Alvarez he will be 25 next year and will be starting the year at Kanny. I don't see him passing Peter and DiMichele on the 2B org chart yet.

When in doubt, go with the one with the best pitch. And Bassitt has always had the stats to back it up. I can understand some people were low on him because he missed most of the year and he's already 25. But now it's time take him seriously.

QUOTE (Timmy U @ Aug 22, 2014 -> 01:11 PM) I think this is 100% about making Anderson eligible for the Fall League. Not really, in order for a player to be assigned to AFL without losing the one slot for below AA player each team is entitled to, the player has be playing for AA or above as of Aug 1st. Though I think this move is a no brainier as a domino effect of Micah shut down and Sanchez promoted.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Aug 22, 2014 -> 09:33 AM) I have an obvious bias, but I think Semien deserves more playing time than that. If Sanchez plays well in the next month, he gets the starting 2B job, if not then the job is up for grabs between him and Semien, and even Micah heading into next year. And if Sanchez hits a bump next year or Gillaspie comes back down to earth, I think Semien is next in line to take over. With his position flexibility, he can easily get 300-400 PA's next year. The point is I'd prefer a platoon of Gillapsie and Semien to maximize the production out of the 3B position.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 21, 2014 -> 03:56 PM) I think some folks are maybe overreacting to Bassitt a bit. I like him, I think I had him around 20 or 22 on my list of prospects, just as he was starting his return. He looks healthy which is great, but I can't see a legit argument having him any higher than the bottom of the teens. He's got a very good fastball, and nothing else above average, unless he's made large scale changes recently. It's definitely not any worse than people overreacting on James Dykstra's Low A stats and ranked him in the upper teens in the ranking. And I think most of the FS voters had Dykstra much higher than Bassitt, which, to me, is the bigger crime. I am probably one of Bassitt's biggest supporters, dating back to last year. It isn't just based on his recent success. Even so, I think his potential only tops out as a back of the rotation starter, with bullpen as the much more likely destination. But given that he was a 22 year old college senior drafted in the 16th round, and now he's moving closer to getting a chance to start in the majors, this has to be one of the bigger success stories for the Sox in recent years.

Really, the only crime Conor Gillaspie has committed this season is leaving Moises Sierra hanging dry, and forgetting to smile when Santa stop by to give him his Christmas present. The perfect platoon partner for Gillaspie is Semien, who has been one of the best hitters against lefties in our system throughout his career. Meanwhile, Gillaspie is hitting a cool .337 against righties. If we head into next season with Sanchez at 2B, Ramirez at SS, platoon of Gillaspie and Semien at 3B, with Semien spelling Sanchez and Ramirez, we'd be in a good shape for our infield positions.

QUOTE (maggsmaggs @ Aug 21, 2014 -> 09:55 AM) Exactly, we haven't had two legit ML-caliber shortstops in quite awhile. In the past, we had shortstops who projected as second basemen, but now we actually have two shortstops who profile as ML shortstops. Carlos Sanchez will have a better chance to stick at SS in the ML than Anderson would.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Aug 20, 2014 -> 08:48 PM) Bassit with 8Ks through 6. Dude is legit. Wish he hadn't gotten injured, he'd likely be at the very least be a September call up. I'd probably start him in AAA next year. He will have to be put on the 40 man during the off season and will be 26 come next year. He's also dominated the competition the past two years. I'd say if he performs well in ST next year, he gets a spot in the rotation.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 20, 2014 -> 12:58 PM) To make this happen we need to have an obvious guy we'd be willing to either trade, demote, or release if Rodon is tearing up the minors in May. If they're not willing to eat Danks's contract and Noesi is pitching as well as he has with the Sox, then that means they need to find an expendable arm to fill that rotation slot in April and May. I can't think of any recent years where the Sox didn't have to bring in anyone outside of their opening day rotation to start games during the season. And given the number of holes we have to fill in the lineup and bullpen, I don't think we will have a very strong back of the rotation heading into next year.

I don't want to see Rodon penciled in as a starter at the start of next year. We need to have 5 starters ready to go, and call Rodon up in event of injury or someone gets traded. Ideally, we shouldn't call him up until June. Even if we pencil him in as a starter, I am sure he will be on an inning limit, and he won't be able to help much in a playoff race if we are in one.

It's seems the 5th inning is the make or break inning for Q. His ERA for 5th inning last year was an unreal 8.51, this year 4.81. Ironically, when he first came on the scene in 2012, he would get hit hard int he first 3 innings, and settle down in the latter part of the game.