SCCWS

I have been wintering in Florida for 10+ years. I usually went to 5-6 games every year at different parks since the White Sox don't play there. Florida has a good number of 2-3 hour commutes each way for the visiting teams. About 3-4 years ago, I realized that spring training games totally changed. Prices went up and quality went down. Boston and New York (Yankees) were the hot tickets. But over the last few years, pre-covid,, the visiting team usually played 3-5 of their starters while the home team played most regulars. Usually the 3-5 were a starting pitcher, 2 roster relievers, and 1-2 everyday players. Teams realized with the driving distances and the traffic, MLB players got more benefit working out in their training facilities than spending 4-6 hours riding busses. So at least in Florida, it was usually a games of AA/AAA players against mostly an MLB roster. This year may be different because of the reduced ST. I don't know if the Arizona teams are different due to their travel.

I would add that Eloy will most likely not get perfect attendance next year, so hoping Vaughn performs in RF and a sub in LF could be a major concern.

Maybe the Mets still might although I think 4 is the magic number for whoever gets him

I agree. We don't know if he can play RF or IB adequately. We also don't know how he would hit as a DH. Some players don't hit well as a DH i.e. Grandal for example. He is 24 and needs to be given a position not bring a utility player.

If he does, and many of us think he will, Hahn needs to make him the LF and move Eloy to DH or move him to IB and move Jose to DH. Last year the kid got bounced around. He needs a future if he proves he is ready to be a fixture in the line-up

Makes sense.

It will be interesting to see who ends up as the presumed "5th " outfielder after ST. They would be the first promotion from AAA should the need arise. Obviously position ( i.e. CF vs corner) could also be a factor)

It is St Patty's day and our luck ran out. Joc heading west to join Carlos.

Which means Eloy will not be the primary DH.

With the shortened spring training, we will probably see more injuries. Having surplus SP could be an important insurance policy.

Having lived in New England for a long time, Joe Kelly is more than an injured pitcher. You can bet he will become a magnet with the local media for his quirky comments. He will also be the first White Sox player to instigate a bench clearing brawl this season. For those familiar with former pitcherBill Lee( i.e Spaceman) Joe is cut from the same cloth.

or did Kimbrel tell Joe that he would 1. Be here till the trade deadline in July. or 2. Be gone next week so he can take over his lease. or 3. Will be the closer on the South Side and you can be my set-up man like we did in Boston.

I like Joe Kelly. He is very entertaining but he can also go off the rails at times. I think he will be a fan favorite as long as he is consistent. Will always have his teammates backs.

I think the local Florida and Arizona Chamber of Congress Offices would not agree.................. Luckily for Florida they are having a great tourist season despite the loss of spring training. Not sure how Arizona is doing.

Good point. I think Grandal as a DH has much lower wRc+ than as a C.

Players who really worked hard in the off-season will benefit, young or old. Players will get less spring training which could result in more injuries.

Walmart eliminated 'greeters" in 2019. They retained some number of them as receipt checkers as you exit and in various miscellaneous roles in the express checkout area and covid related tasks.

I Understand your point, but only 68% of Walmart employees are full-time.

Shah-la, la-la-la-la live for today And don't worry 'bout tomorrow hey, hey, hey

You can bet we will see a lot more injuries coming out of a shortened spring training whenever it ends.

Jimmy, if so what would that mean for spring training. 2 weeks of training and 2 weeks of games? They said tonight the the first week of games from 2/28-3/5 are already cancelled.

The Lawyers are in no hurry. They punch clocks. .................................

Actually, it really makes no sense that MLB has different rules for Al and NL. Suppose in the NBA, the Western Conference had the player that is fouled take their own foul shots but in the Eastern Conference, teams would have a designated foul shooter for each team?

But you can be assured that the financial nerds in the FO know that delaying ST by one week costs owners X but getting concession Y in a new agreement gets us z. You can bet the teams know how long they can delay before they have to settle.

FWIW--Heard this morning that the MLB Umpire Association was meeting today in Orlando.