Jose Abreu

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28661018/white-sox-reach-deal-cuban-rhp-norge-carlos-vera

That's huge. Wasn't the reason for the fake players something with the MLBPA? Did they reach a new agreement or something?

I read somewhere this offseason that Madrigal wants 1

I don’t remember who it was, but I was arguing with someone last offseason that Moncada’s strong September in 2018 was a good sign because he was using a completely different approach, and all I got was, “it doesn’t matter because it was September”. Sure enough, it was basically the same approach he used in 2019. In other words, I totally agree that 165 PAs is a SSS, but you can’t throw them away when a new approach or other significant changes are being employed.

I was joking, and I actually do believe that he has some legitimacy. I just think the Dodgers tweet was worded in a way that would give him credit if a trade occurred, but would not tarnish his reputation if nothing happened. In other words, he might as well have not tweeted it

He'd make a great politician

I agree, and that's what makes these lists dumb. "Right now" means 2020, so there's no need to include guys who are trending downward in lieu of rising stars like Moncada and Devers. I like that Petriello had Moncada at #6.

Apparently he turned down a bunch of other offers and wanted to return to SF

I was under the impression that Dallas Keuchel and Jimmy Cordero would be the first ever teammates to share the same number during a season!

I agree and I think we'll sign a bench player in the coming days. Yeah, the bright side is absolutely that it makes for a more entertaining sport. Hopefully it motivates Jerry to continue spending, too. This offseason was a great start, but a massive finishing move might be all we need.

Rich Hill and Homer Bailey look better now than they did at the time. Donaldson and Maeda are great adds, and I look forward to our response (which I don't expect to come until next winter)

It fits nicely with the awful ST jerseys. I know a lot of people like them but I can't get past the big batterman logo on the front directly next to the big standard logo on the sleeve

I think those are the same spring training jerseys as last year, just a Nike version

Holt plays 7 positions and is coming off back to back years with an OBP over .362. Yolmer is nowhere near as good. Their similar WAR totals are a function of playing time, not performance

The only guys on that list who I think TA is better than (going forward) are DeJong and Polanco. His omission isn't that bad IMO

Yes, especially for the infield. Moncada/Anderson/Madrigal is really solid defensively, and becomes great if Anderson plays his 2018 defense (or better). A power-hitting bench option is more tantalizing than a defense-first guy, IMO.

What specifically do you think is wrong with his approach?

There's a scenario that's not at all far-fetched where Collins, Sheets, and Vaughn all dominate their levels while Abreu and Encarnacion perform to expectations in MLB. At some point, a trade will probably be necessary, even in addition to declining the option on EE.

Agreed, he gets slept on but I think he'll actually be a solid MLB option in the future (probably not for us). From 5/30 to the end of the season, he hit .287/.372/.481 with a 148 wRC+. For reference, Robert posted a 155 wRC+ in AA.

Not to mention, Grandal and EE are the only "slow" guys. Abreu is closer to average by sprint speed, and Eloy is actually deceptively fast

I still think Altuve uses other methods of cheating. He looks innocent through this study but I'm curious to see how he performs moving forward

MLB posted a video today that got me thinking: Eloy hit .267/.315/.513 (.828 OPS, 117 OPS+, 116 wRC+) in a rookie year that was often interrupted by injury, rusty periods following injury, and so on. When he was healthy and recovered from whatever ailment he had been dealing with (as in, ~2 weeks after returning from an IL stint), he was awesome. He seems to have bulked up over the winter, and his swing looks great at the end of that video. Defense aside (I think he'll improve to the point where he's at least playable), what do you expect from him next year? Something like .270/.320/.500 may be a reasonable baseline, but if he stays healthy, I think he's gonna take a massive leap. I wouldn't be surprised if he puts up .280/.340/.560 with 45 home runs (he was on a 41 home run per 162 pace last year), for example. Is that crazy?

They seem to keep their managerial plans very close to the vest, but I've always had a suspicion that he's "next in line". Based on what I've read about him, I'd love it. It would also correspond well with all of the pro-analytics quotes and articles that came from Soxfest.

There are hundreds, they just don't get any opportunities or interest because they aren't former players or sexy names. Brian Kenny wrote about this in Ahead of the Curve, it's actually pretty interesting.

Re: Renteria, his roster management late in 2019 really irked me too. There was absolutely no reason for Welington Castillo to get significant playing time in lieu of Zack Collins, for example