tray

If I could I would..

Uh, no.

Moncada may not take kindly to putting on an outfield glove and learning a new position. Moreover, that might be a move that Moncada and his agent believe could diminish his value as a player in future negotiations.

Some of the 1919 White Sox players were offered bribes by gamblers to "throw" the Series. In contrast, the alleged Houston scheme may have involved individuals other than the players..perhaps even those that were within the Houston organization. Any cheating is unacceptable, but I have to say, the covert use of technology to fool fans brings cheating to another level. I think that MLB should take steps to prevent electronic surveillance and communications to pitchers and catchers during at bats, in whatever form. On a somewhat unrelated issue, I am in favor of transitioning to some form of electronic strike zone to take the home plate umpire out of every ball and strike call. It seems crazy to me that we have replay review of selected calls on the field but home plate umpires are calling balls and strikes on pitches that are arguably one inch inside or outside the strike zone. IMO, it seems humanly impossible for a home plate umpire to gauge whether a sinker dives down prior to crossing the plate or not.

Shoeless Joe Jackson was banned for life from baseball for doing nothing wrong. I think he hit .375 in the WS with 12 hits and good defense. They called the 1919 team the Black Sox but other teams were cheating with regularity back then. So maybe similar to the cheating that was rampant back then, teams are now stealing signs with the aid of cameras or taking other steps to cheat. Winning has become a be all and end all in our society, but that is another story.. Anyway, anticipating the speed and/or location of a pitch (by improper means) changes the game in an insidious way that is insulting to fans of the game on many levels. While MLB addresses this issue, smart pitchers and catchers should become even more aware of this possibility and take further steps to thwart the cheaters.

My money is on Boras.

wanna bet ?

Given that, I would consider trading with Boston for Benintendi and Eovaldi and try to get Boston to eat a year of EO's remaining contract. Let the Cubs have Castellanos for $100 Million.

which means that acquiring a relatively young decent LH hitting RF than can play good D would be golden

Perhaps. Maybe the BoSox would take Collins or ReyLo and not require that the Sox take on money with one of their bloated player contracts. If trading away talent to get a decent RF is such an anathema then open the pocketbook and overpay for Castellanos, because that is what it will take to beat out the cubs and other teams to get him.

Red Sox probably would not be interested in the White Sox backing up that garbage truck at Fenway and unloading it. We probably could get Benintendi for Vaughn if we took Eovaldi with him took over at least 1/3 or 1/2 of the amount of his remaining 3 year contract. A stiff price to pay but perhaps the right thing to do for both teams. That deal would have to be conditioned on an Eovaldi physical to make sure his arm does not require surgery.

Check to see how happy the Boston RedSox fan base is right now with all the FA contracts DD got them into. Price., Eovaldi...The WS don't want to make numerous mistakes like that and get stuck holding the bag for several years on under-performing players who are signed for 15 Million or more a year. The WS might be better off not signing any of the highest priced FA and instead pursuing players who they can sign to more modest contracts. I would be fine with that.

Exactly, and that makes it possible to buy low on a player.

II might start out offering lower tier pitching prospects plus Yolmer and/ or Collins for Bennintendi. Not sure I would offer much more...possibly Vaughn for a package of Benni plus Eovaldi, but I would not trade one of our untouchables, and IMO Madrigal is an untouchable at this point. This has been an interesting thread to read and to contemplate some of the ideas. I really like Bennintendi as a potential RF for us.

Maybe the desire to head in a different direction as set forth in this article might actually mean that Benintendi might be shopped.

I suggested Vaughn but maybe that's too much. Don't know, I was just thinking..

I would have Benintendi in RF and leave Eloy in Left. My thought was that the WS might be able to but low on him given Benintendi's struggles last season. Admittedly, I have no idea what buying low on Benintendi would entail in terms of trade value. Also, BoSox have a few contracts they want to unload which could be part of a potential deal I suppose.

I would like to see Hahn go after Castellanos like a b1tch.....and that is going to mean out-bidding the cubs and a few other teams. I wonder what it would take to get Benintendi from Boston. Vaughn? Or is Vaughn on the no trade list/

"Anyone who can't acknowledge that the Cubs own at least 65% of baseball fans in this city just has their head in the sand. " The Sox have more fans "in the city" where the demographics are quite different than most suburbs. The concept of "owning fans" is kind or weird. No one owns you. Most people are not consumed by sports or baseball fandom. Those who watch infrequently do so for the entertainment value rather than based on fan allegiance to any sports franchise. Most are fair weather fans that sway back and forth based on whichever way the wind is blowing at the time. I sense a renewed interest in the up and coming White Sox.

I agree but I am afraid that Ricketts/Theo will offer the moon to get him...maybe 5/100 or something. When Ricketts wants something, he usually gets it because he is flush with Ameritrade money and is willing to spend whatever it takes. You don't want to get into a bidding war with someone that has more money than brains.

If the Sox sign Grandal Collins becomes trade bait or maybe he will have a spot on the 25 man roster but only on a very short leash. That leash gets shorter if he is primarily used as a DH and is still hitting around .200 even with occasional home runs. IMO Zack (who will be 25 before next season) is not going to resign himself into becoming a platoon LH DH and seldom used third option as catcher. If that is how the Sox want to use him he may ask for a trade to a team where he at least has a chance to become a back-up catcher. In any event I am sure he is waiting to see whether or not the Sox sign Grandal.

If the Sox sign Grandal that could further impede Collins development as a mlb catcher given how few starts he will get . That , in turn, could lessen his trade value as well. Then if the Sox sign LH hitting DH, or they eventually let Vaughn DH even against RH pitchers, Collins will have little use on the 25 man roster. I am OK with all of that and possibly packaging up Collins in a trade package during the off-season *if * Grandal is signed. Then Draft Patrick Bailey , a switch hitting catcher, at number 11 in the first round. HIndsight is 20/20 but I think the Sox wasted valuable time in the 2019 season by allowing Castillo to take starts at catcher away from Collins. These decisions including whether or not to pursue Grandal would be a lot easier if they saw Collins catch several more games and get more ABs last season.

Sox and Cub fans seem to have a different opinion about Castellanos and the degree that they would like to see him play RF in 2020 for their respective team. . I'd be happy with Castellanos on the South side . Admittedly, I don't care that much about getting a LH hitter for RF. I'd rather have a good RH hitter than a shiddy LH hitter as long as the defense was not that much of a liability.

This is almost a moot point for a couple of reasons that everyone knows - Abreu has stated he wants to play here in a more sincere way than many free agents do. He appears to really mean it. Jerry Reinsdorf has indicated he would like him to remain on the WS and he looks like he means it. Abreu is admired by players and most fans for his humble, business-like approach. He can hit and maybe will see better pitches in an improved 2020 line-up. I predict that re-signing Abreu will be one of the first major things the Sox do in the off-season.

For the money, I would prefer Castellanos.