SCCWS

I heard a discussion on fielding recently and it was brought up that Oakland was interesting. They were 2nd in AL in ERA but next to last in fielding defense. The 5 playoff teams in AL finished 2-3-9-10-14 in AL fielding defense. That stat is mediocre but it is an indication that defense did not have a major affect on the outcome this season. I am concerned about defense as well which is why I don't like Semien as an option in 2015. He was worse than Gillaspie at 3B.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Oct 1, 2014 -> 11:47 PM) Way I see it, with an average bullpen we're probably looking at a .500 ballclub this year give or take a game. Sox bullpen lost 32 games, worst in the league. The team in 16th, what I'm calling average, lost 23. That 9 loss differential is the difference between 73 wins and 1 game above .500. I for 1 am a big Avi Garcia fan, and think having him for more than 46 games is already gonna be more beneficial to the offense. If he can tap into that potential we're talking about another 2-3 wins. So right there, IMO with a whole year of Avi and an improved bullpen, this team, before adding to the rotation and lineup is capable of winning ~ 84-85 games. Of course there will indeed be additions to the lineup, and at the very least a fella by the name of Carlos Rodon will more than likely see a lot of time in the rotation. Assuming they hit on most/all their additions, it's very possible this team can compete. There may be another way to look at the bullpen. If we can improve the 3-5 starters, there may be less reliance on the bullpen to deliver 3 innings of relief every game. But in all honesty, Hahn spent $7 Mil on Lindstrom and Beli so he spent some money on the pen and combined with trading Reed and the Jones injury, the results were terrible.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 1, 2014 -> 09:20 AM) But stop and think the other way. The Yankees won a world series by giving Sabathia and ARoid big money. I still don't see them giving back that 2009 world series trophy. Pujols and hamilton have had down seasons but the Angels had the best record in MLB this year. Both Fielder and Crawford have proven to be moveable contracts. Out of that list, the only one that is really a complete disaster for the team that signed it is Howard's extension. Somebody, maybe the Cubs or Yankees, is going to ante up a fortune for each of those 2. When is the last time the top starting pitcher on the market signed for less than you thought he would? I think Lester to Boston for 6 yrs and closer to 30 mil. Boston is supposedly his 1st choice

Story in Boston paper yesterday estimates Scherzer and Lester will get 6 years at $25+Mil per year and Shields will get 4 years in $90 mil range. Cole Hamels will also be available at 4 and $90 but he will require compensation.

QUOTE (chitownsportsfan @ Sep 30, 2014 -> 12:51 AM) Rome wasn't built in a day. The Sox team Hahn inherited was awful. Outside of the Cubs and 'Stros, and argument could be made coming into this season the Sox had the worst MLB talent in all of MLB in '13. Furthermore, unlike those teams, the Sox also were in the unevniable position as having a bottom 5 farm. In fact, when he took over, there were really only 3-5 players on the entire 40 man roster you'd consider possible starters on the next Sox playoff team: Alexei, Quintana, and Sale ok for sure, then name 2 more from the opening day roster in '13. It's slim pickings. Hahn has accomplished in a very short time a) getting the team's MLB talent back to mediocre and b) getting the MilB talent back to mediocre (or possibly even good depending on how highly you view Rodon/Adama/Danish/Montas/Bassitt. He's done this without bumping payroll, in fact he's done this while CUTTING payroll. The team is younger, has 3 foundational players (and contracts) and has enough prospects and payroll flexibility to make a run starting possibly as soon as next year. You don't go from 68 wins or whatever to 90 overnight. That they were 10 better this season while still playing a bunch of dead wood (to see if it wasn't quite rotted to the core in the case of most of it) is a very impressive GM job. Look at how other team's flounder in their tear downs. Hahn did in 1 offseason what it took the 'Stros and Cubs to do in 3-4 and he's done it with hardly any bad mistakes. You can preach on about how awful Paulino was but come on man, he was basically a spring invite that cost the amount of revenue from 1/162 of their MLBAM share. It was a nothing cost move that cost them nothing, and might have even (ya!) gotten them a protected 8th pick rather than a non protected later pick. Anyways, my grades, don't care about the pen won't list them other than as a group: position players nieto: D: --upside is there but needs more seasoning in AAA. Framing awful, hitting has potential, good tools. turned in a OK year for a backup catcher but I'm not gonna curve grade flowers: C- --late season surge and steady defense earn him a passing grade but hardly a standout year Kong: D- -- bumped revenue, was like -2 WAR on field. Abreu: A -- turned from incomplete slugger to triple threat down the stretch, one of the top 5 hitters in MLB, stud. played in 145 games, proved fairly durable if fatigued at end Beckham: D- --defense was usual solid, but with such an awful bat he'd need to be the wiz at SS to carry a 260 OBP. Semian: C- -- showed flashes but also major holes in his game. was hurt by the move to 3B IMO but his bat was MIA except for a few late game heroics Sanchez: C- -- really could be a D but at times an elite glove at 2B. Hitting obviously needs to improve but with that glove he could carry a 260/300/340 type line. Him and Semian will be key next year to any thoughts of contention imo Alexei: B+ -- another year of staying healthy and putting up around 4 WAR. Very much enjoy watching Alexei and his bat was pretty good for a SS in 2014. they don't hit like they did in the sillyball era Conor: B- -- again, no curves, ended up 1.2 fWAR and 1.6 bWAR, which eh, is probably what he is. Needs a platoon partner badly. Could be why Semian is playing so much 3B -- he's the platoon in '15. Keppinger: F -- if he had played, he would have sucked. Garcia: C+ -- Bat was even slower than usual after the injury but ran into enough and took enough walks to where you can squint and see a pretty damn good hitter. Middle case seems he'll be an OK starter. Hard worker to come back. Moises: C+ -- toolsy. May never be more than a 4th OF, but worth taking a flyer on in '15 spring Taylor: INC -- nothing there Tank: D -- brutal defense, no average, decent power, adds up to a below replacement level player that will probably be traded for scraps Eaton: B+ -- easy A if he had played 150 games instead of 123. Gets on base at a good clip (361), plays great defense, and can run the bases a bit. Not much of a base stealer but his reads and 1st to 3rd are top notch. Danks: D- -- one day he'll have a lifetime job in the sox marketing dpt if he wants. Leury: F -- sucks, should have been in AAA but Sox were incredibly thin at SS depth Willkins: F -- see, Danks. future FO mid level executive if he wants starters: Sale: A- -- some injury time missed, otherwise can't ask for more, top 3 starter in MLB. Q: A- -- workhorse, went over 200 ip, tough luck loser often, but top 15 mlb starter Johnson: F -- has to be injured, lost his razor thin margin when he went from 90-92 to 88-90. Not optimistic he'll ever bounce back, seems to have a shoulder problem Paulino: F -- easy come easy go Carroll : D+ -- actually was a decent facsmille of a MLB quality 4thish, 5th starter at times. Othertimes proved he's a long man at best, absolute best. Noesi: C -- did a solid job, passable 4th starter in a mediocre rotation, solid 5th in a good one though. cheap for the next couple years good pickup bassit: C+ -- if he can keep that control up he'll be a solid MLB starter. Not sure he really can though. Pen, grade as whole: F -- Only guys with decent FIPS are I believe Putnam and Petricka. Eveyrone else pretty much sucked. FO: Hahn: A -- see above Robin: D -- players like him. awful tactician, has no concept of platoons and lineup construction. loves to make a move only to be easily countered by the opposing team Cooper: B -- didn't have much to work with, made some improvements with Noesi. The cream rose with Q and Sale. Will have his most important project since Sale next year with Rodon. Stevenson: B -- In general, I think he was a positive influence but maybe only because the talent was better. Team grade: B-: An exciting year that had many great walk off wins and some elite indidivudal performances. The Sox haven't had a hitter this good since Frank. They haven't had a pitcher this good since...? The bullpen was awful,a function of throwing a bunch of s*** at the wall and hoping it turned into gold plated s***. Didn't happen and the team also gave up a ton of runs at the margins with awful defense in the corners (for the most part) and below replacement batting lines spread throughout the lineup. THe future however should see those holes filled, either through acquiring some salary and/or trades, or in house prospects. When Robin was hired, I was one of the posters who complained that hiring a manager with zero experience was a bad move. Many people defended the move saying that a manager does not need experience to do a good job. Now I think the bullpen and overall weak roster was the main problem with the 2014 team. That weak roster extended to the AAA team since that is where teams look to find replacements for injuries and non-performers. You give Hahn an A and he is responsible for the overall weak lineup and the makeup of the bullpen. You give Cooper a B and he is responsible for the production from that bullpen that Hahn gave him. But you give Robin a D for the overall results. If Hahn had assembled a good bullpen or if Cooper developed a good bullpen the team probably was a .500 team. That would have made robin a pretty good manager.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Sep 29, 2014 -> 11:32 AM) I thought he looked way, way better in September and the numbers bear that out: .273/.333/.485/.818, 6.8% BB, 17.6% K, .359 wOBA, 129 wRC+. He genuinely looks like he could be a very good player wherever it is that he ends up. FWIW, had Semien been eligible for the top 25 prospects in the system at mid-season, he would have ranked #3 for me. So far he is a below average defensive player. Now in fairness he has bounced around among 3B-SS-2B. But in 60 games in the ML he had 14 errors. Putting that in perspective, Gillaspie had 12 in 127 games.

So basically we got all star performances from Sale, Q, Eaton and Abreu and we only improved by 10 games. I am afraid .500 next year may be a stretch.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Sep 27, 2014 -> 02:35 PM) Why wouldn't it? Switch hitter, high OBP. Low k rate. The White Sox are most likely not going to sign him, but he is a great hitter who, if you gave him a 3 year contract, would be 38 when that contract ended. Saying he will physically fall apart like Paulie just based on age is silly. There are plenty of examples of elite hitters remaining elite at this age. I agree to some extent. But Paulie was a 1st baseman and he declined rapidly. VMart was a ctacher for many years so his decline may show up earlier based on the wear and tear of the position he played. But every body is different and he has not shown a decline at the plate so far.

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Sep 25, 2014 -> 01:37 PM) I love Danish and am hopeful for Hawkins, but let's be honest -- you're giving up a potential #3 starter who might be a good reliever instead plus a guy who you'd be happy with IF he becomes what Belt is today. Sure, both those guys COULD become stars, but they both very likely won't. That's worth it for a solid left-handed corner OF with solid pop that is controllable for 3 more years. How is he a corner OF. He has started less than 10% of his career starts in LF and in half those games he was pulled late for defense. He got moved to IB and he is a pretty good defensively there. We need an above average corner outfielder defensively to offset Avi on the other side.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 24, 2014 -> 09:03 AM) Isn't that a downgrade to Tampa's offense? Not necessarily. Tampa would be giving up a 33yr old $7 Mil # 1 0r 2 batter for a 25 yr old # 5 or 6 batter who makes less than 1/2 what Zobrist does. Tampa got 2 young infielders in the Price trade so they may make Zobrist available.

QUOTE (LDF @ Sep 23, 2014 -> 09:29 PM) that is a very interesting slant. I like it, at this time, I can't think of a counter. great job. How about Ben Zobrist? He is 33 but still a very valuable player finishing up a $7 Mil contract. Tampa needs offense so I wonder if we could package Viciedo+ Danks + cash ( Tampa won't want the 14 Mil) for Zobrist and a young RH pitcher. Sox could stick Zobrist at 2nd or OF or even SS, he adds speed and OBP as well as some pop from the left. Tampa always has good young arms at AAA. Danks has pitched pretty well at the Trop and Viciedo gives them a younger hitter w some pop behind Longoria

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Sep 23, 2014 -> 06:44 AM) Ichiro...too old, more of a 4th/5th guy now Granderson...was often mentioned as a possible free agent signing in the offseason, probably too expensive for that level of production, basically a platoon guy at this point in his career Aoki...maybe Markakis...depends on the cost in dollars/years Nava...meh Jay...don't think Cardinals will make him available after bounceback year Ethier...see Carl Crawford below Leonys Martin...another Cuban, coming off pretty decent (for him) offensive year Rasmus...will the output be worth the "potential" tag often attached? can anyone get through to him? Denard Span...quietly having a very strong season for Nationals Carl Crawford....either or neither Ethier can stay or go (bad attempt at pun) Josh Hamilton....often debated/discussed Matt Joyce...this is the typical KW bounceback/buy low candidate after a disappointing 2014 Gerardo Parra....declining defensive splits, nothing close to average offensively Domonic Brown....see Matt Joyce, non-tender candidate who's another version of Dayan Viciedo in many ways Dexter Fowler...would definitely have some interest in him, depending on cost CoCo Crisp...how many baseball lives can this guy have? about as many as Victor Martinez seemingly Grady Sizemore...just for Lillian if she's still lurking I disqualified Melky Cabrera off the bat for being out of our probable price range Nava. Has had a solid 2nd half of season. he can also play 1st base as well. Would come cheap. But I don't think he can play center

QUOTE (beautox @ Sep 21, 2014 -> 04:25 AM) Honestly on that play i thought Semein showed a fair amount of range and Avi should've called him off but this is a young players being young. What I've really like out of Semein since his call up is the following: .282/ .333/ .436 - .769 he has cut his walk and strikeout rate (4.7% BB 16.3% K) in half respectively because he is being more aggressive in the count. I feel in this SSS he is showing he is capable of dropping his strikeout rate and it wouldn't surprise me in the least to see him move his walk rate north of 8% and closer to 12%ish while maintaining his current strikeout rate, his .ISO looks great out of the middle infield even better if he plays short full time. But remember call-up numbers don't mean much. The level of competition tends to drop off as opponents are also using AA and AAA talent especially pitching. Even defensively youmg players may play different positions as we have seen Semien move around. Hopefully he arrives next spring with a set position and looks better than he did this spring.

QUOTE (flavum @ Sep 21, 2014 -> 09:08 AM) http://espn.go.com/mlb/standings/_/group/9/sort/winPercent 8th worst record, but same amount of losses as the Reds and Phillies. The Padres would have to lose four more games than the Sox over the last 8 games for the Sox to fall out of the 10 worst. So the protected pick is looking safe unless something crazy happens. Also, quite a race for the first pick: Texas and Arizona have 93 losses, and Colorado has 91. Draft lottery, please. Make a TV show out of it. Very limited interest in the MLB Draft. Football and basketball drafts attract attention because the players most likely will make the roster the following year. I am pretty sure I heard where 1 player from the 2012 draft has made it to a ML roster other than the Sept call-ups.

I don't get to see a lot of games. But I notice that in very limited ML action this year, Semien has had a lot of errors. We complained about Conor and Beckham but is Semien really bad or just being moved around too much

QUOTE (Chilihead90 @ Sep 20, 2014 -> 03:44 AM) I hate Boston too, more than any team in baseball, but I'd rather he go there than to anyone in the Central which would affect us much more. If all the rumors are true, Boston will be bringing Lester back. That would probably eliminate them from going after another big FA starter. but they certainly have tons of young AAA talent to trade for a 2nd starter. Their offense has had a major upgrade with their 2 Cuban additions in the outfield so they probably will focus on Lester+ another starter.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Sep 19, 2014 -> 11:27 AM) If you can find a proven 30 HR 3B that a team would have traded for a mediocre closer, please let Rick Hahn know immediately. Welcome to rebuilding. Sometimes you have to take chances on guys and they won't always work out. And let's not declare Davidson dead after one bad AAA season at age 23. Either way, Addison Reed wasn't gonna be the closer for the next Sox playoff team, nor will he be the closer for the next DBacks playoff team. Let's not declare Addison Reed at 25 can't be a closer for a playoff team.

QUOTE (knightni @ Sep 19, 2014 -> 08:05 AM) Davidson has more up-side, even now. He'll 24 next year and will have a chance to make the majors still. Reed will be another aging reliever that has had marginal major league success. Must be an AZ fan. Reed is 25 years old. That is not aging. He is younger than Nate Jones.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Sep 16, 2014 -> 11:24 PM) All I can say is I have a very large fear that we are throwing away a key asset's most productive years because the rest of the team isn't ready to compete, under a coaching staff that seems very lax on fundamentals. I know it's unpopular, but I just can't help thinking we should trade him to more adequately capitalize on his value now, if at all possible. Chris Sale is 25. That is very young for a star starting pitcher. The White Sox have plenty of time to build around him. Because he is so good at 25, he may be that elite player that comes into an organization every 20 years. He is our Frank Thomas of this new generation. You don't trade an elite player because the team around him is not developed enough.

QUOTE (GreenSox @ Aug 29, 2014 -> 11:56 PM) Yes it is. And yes he is (one of them, anyway). Players have quit on him - he bears some responsibility for that. And this isn't the first time. With his record, he'd have been out on his ears a year ago and scorned like Bevington were he not Robin Ventura, a "hero". White Sox still have a btter record than the Red Sox. Boston won the World Series last year in Farrell's first year. This year many of their veterans and rookies are underperforming. I would say if Ventura is to blame for our veterans not performing, he must also be the reason Abreu and Sale are having great seasons.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Aug 28, 2014 -> 07:30 AM) Actually come to think of it, I've defended cubs here more than most, but there's no way you trade Sale and Abreu for the names listed in the op. The answer then should be the Sox. Not necessarily. Teams can have several great players but the overall strength of the lineup is the importatnt thing. we have sale and abreu having great seasons but the team is still bad. But also , you have to factor in doing it versus potential. The Sox have 3 young players in Sale, Q and Abreu doing it and Avi and Eaton having pretty good showings . I look at the Red Sox and their 2 elite young players ( Bradley and Bogaerts) going into this year. Understanding both played key positions SS and CF but both had poor seasons

QUOTE (scs787 @ Aug 27, 2014 -> 01:04 AM) I went with the 1st one. All I'm asking for is a 5 game improvement. Way I see it is even with an average pen we're looking at at least a 10 game improvement overall this year.....A "10 game improvement" with a whole lot of money to spend leads me to believe they're heading in the right direction. I don't agree. They were terrible last season so they really should have improved this season. Add to that the fact that last season they unloaded some veteran pitching at the trade deadline that they didn't do this season. I think you have to look at positional development over wins/losses. The total failure of the bullpen makes this season look worse record-wise than what it is. I feel they took a step up especially with Abreu but there are still a bunch of holes.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Aug 21, 2014 -> 04:26 PM) Who cares?? Like others have said, there's no correlation between attendance and salary. EDIT- BTW, Well done on the interview. I'm rooting for the kid. www.hardballtimes.com/how-are-wins-attendance-and-payroll-all-related The attached, using data from 2000-2011, concludes there is a major correlation between payroll and attendance.

QUOTE (Bigsoxhurt35 @ Aug 21, 2014 -> 09:18 PM) Anyone hear any names in return? I seen Hahn's comments about evaluating but I'd imaging they've been doing that Sometimes these trades are based on performance. If Gordon produces X or above Sox get a lousy player. If Gordon doesn't produce above X Sox get a lousier player.

QUOTE (peavy44 @ Aug 21, 2014 -> 12:28 AM) They need pitching. Dank's value is very low so even if the Angel's took him, we would get little in return. You basically get the salary dump.