Timmy U

I wonder if this means Gil is not going to Houston for Tucker.

Devin Williams to the Yankees.

God, I hope you're right. He looked good at times in W-S last year. He gives you good AB's, plays a better CF than I expected and he's a pretty darned good baserunner. Lest year, he didn't hit into a lot of luck and he seemed to have trouble timing that leg kick. If he can play center flanked by, say, Saucke/McClain and Montgomery, he could shoot back up the rankings in a hurry. Really seems like he wants to be excellent.

My opinion hasn't change since the last thread: The specific players at the top are better, but I won't consider the Sox a top farm system until the prove that their processes of scouting and player development are on a par with the top teams. Look at the Cubs, the Dodgers, the Rays, the Brewers, the Red Sox, etc. They get a lot of value from lower picks that they maximize and they do a good job identifying the right talent with their premium picks. Plus, all of them are active in LatAm. Mike Shirley is showing good signs in his premium picks (with the exception of Jacob Gonzalez) but what they do internationally and the development of players like Bonemer and Wolkow will tell you if the Sox are really poised to have a top system or if the current ranking is an illusion tied to selling off their entire team.

How would he by like either of them, let alone both? I could imagine a middling outcome for Braden of a low average hitter with power maybe too many strikeouts, but good defense and an elite throwing arm. Santander with better D? Solar is huge power with no D. Baez was great D with good power and then suddenly he couldn’t hit at all.

Love this trade. Teel is a good athlete who could play multiple positions. I am a huge Quero fan and I am not worried about finding at bats for both moving forward. Montgomery is a risk, but that’s the only reason he’s available. The other players both have a decent of being mlb contributors. I can imagine better, I suppose, but it could be much much worse. Let’s see how it turns out.

I believe the roster is at 38, but they can DFA more guys in the morning if they needed to. Lotta dead weight on the 40 man.

BA’s draft makes waaay more sense. I want more upside than Taylor. Dumesnil is either gonna rocket up boards or his stock will collapse. I am intrigued by Willits. Appenzeller is a possibility, but more so to push down to 2-1. I think Gamble is also a possibility. They will be in position to get some good at 10. Let’s hope they do it. 2026 HS class supposed to be very good, so there’s that.

Crawford is a super risky prospect. High swing rate, rarely walks, tons of groundballs, not a slam dunk to stick in center. I would not be happy if he is the main return for Crochet.

Thank God the Yankees kept Spencer Jones to pick up the slack.

$51 mil/yr. Not bad if you can get it.

Link to Wittenmyer's article in here. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/12/garrett-crochet-rumors-cubs-padres-yankees-red-sox-reds.html

Cincinnati beat reporter Gordon Wittenmyer says Reds are out on Crochet.

Ugh. Not a Lowder fan. I watched him in AA and he did not dominate. I get that he pitched well in mlb, but look under the hood and it is not promising. SSS and all that. I need guys with ceiling. I could see 2 of Collier, Arroyo, and Stewart, plus Chase Petty. Lowder would be the major piece if you got him and the Sox need bats.

Trading Crochet to the Reds really depends on how you feel about Cam Collier and whether you believe Arroyo's gonna hit. Would be a huge risk cuz Collier's trending towards 1b and Arroyo missed almost all of last year and has not been great since the Reds got him from Seattle. If he reverts to pre-trade form, he'd be a cornerstone. If not, it's a quantity trade hat holds down the fort until guys like Bonemer and Wolkow either develop or bust.

Of those two, Magdaleno makes more sense to me. 8th guy in the 'pen as a lefty. Probably has as good/better stuff than Ellard. I feel like Webb is just a guy. Would be a replacement if you trade Shuster, but is he really better than the 2nd/3rd tier lefties in the system like Bush, Eder, Schweitzer, Gordon, and Murphy? I didn't like the Drohan pick last year and I would not be thrilled with Webb, but I like upside.

I would definitely give Sosa at bats somewhere. He went to winter ball to work on playing shortstop. It is the position he feels best at. Kind of a menace everywhere else. He crushed that league, but hard to read too much into that. The last month of the season, Sosa was one of their best players. SSS and all that, but he was at least good in AAA. I want Sosa, Baldwin, Ramos, and I suppose Vargas to play. Sosa or Vargas at DH. Baldwin could do multiple positions. OTOH, I am very skeptical about Fletcher’s ability to hit. He is an excellent defensive right fielder, but iffy in center. I am intrigued by DeLoach because he was quite good in AAA, but 26 year old 4A players rarely make the leap to cromulent regular. I love Colas’ tools and he can play 1b, but Fuller has a lot of work to do on his swing decisions. Will be interesting to see if they get even one mlb-ready player for Crochet. I wouldn’t bet on it. I think they are prizing ceiling over proximity.

I would hate this trade almost as much as I hated the Vargas trade. Bradfield is a 4th outfielder/pinchrunner. He cannot hit.

I do not believe that any of the young lefties have earned a job, let alone two of them. There will plenty of at bats to go around for 4A types without opening another position for them.

I am no sure a Crochet trade is dependent on any of these signings. FAs are flying off the shelf at really high prices. Tyler O’Neill just signed as largely the weak side of a RF platoon for $16.5 mil a year. Fried is gonna make a ton. I think there will be at least one team that would rather spend prospects than $$$$.

Not sure I believe the source, but would rather have three years of Benintendi than 3 games of Taijuan Walker. Not a believer.

I don’t think there’s a lot of separation in that 5-7 area. I am a big believer. I would put Taylor at 5. I also would put Burke and Wolkow in the top 10. Keep in mind, Big George is younger than Bonemer. Hopefully, he starts back in Kanny and gets a chance to find a groove.

This is a horrible idea and not just because last year’s golden bat for the Sox would have been Paul DeJong.

BA's JJ Cooper published his Rule 5 preview today. https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/2024-rule-5-draft-preview-top-players-to-know/ There are no Sox listed, so it would be a surprise if they lose someone, but who knows?

I'll believe Baltimore will give up anything significant for anybody when I see it. I hope it's Boston.