caulfield12 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 https://www.mlb.com/news/pete-alonso-rumors Alonso with Reds joining hunt? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 (edited) Is the new "market niche" strategy to wait as long as possible into the offseason and get bargain prices on Type B/C veteran free agents? But free agency has a number of interesting veterans still available who could be fairly affordable or in some cases may even consider signing non-roster deals. Anthony Rizzo, J.D. Martinez, Jason Heyward, Mark Canha, and Alex Verdugo are among the many free agents who could be at least speculative fits for San Diego’s current needs and are unlikely to break the bank. As for the rotation, starting pitchers can often garner high annual salaries even late in free agency. That could make adding to the rotation difficult to accomplish without a trade that frees up payroll, though it’s possible that a swing man such as Jakob Junis or Jose Urena could linger on the market and sign at a discount as Michael Lorenzen did last winter. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/02/a-j-preller-padres-plan-to-add-a-bat-or-two-an-arm-or-two.html Edited February 2 by caulfield12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TaylorStSox Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 (edited) The Cease trade looks bad now, but it's still way too early to give up on Thorpe and Zavala. Yeah, Thorpe maxes out at 92, but his MiLB stats are undeniable and his change up is legitimately one of the best individual pitches you'll ever see. If he can stay healthy, his floor is a number 4 innings eater that will flash brilliance. Zavala is 20 years old and has a beautiful, effortless swing and plus, plus plate discipline. Both of them have a legitimate shot at being contributors on good teams. Zavala isn't the type of high ceiling no floor prospect we've featured over the last 20 years. He's a very high floor, disciplined hitter with exceptional fundamentals. Give it a little time and try to have some faith. What's the worst that can happen? Edited February 2 by TaylorStSox 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 40 minutes ago, TaylorStSox said: The Cease trade looks bad now, but it's still way too early to give up on Thorpe and Zavala. Yeah, Thorpe maxes out at 92, but his MiLB stats are undeniable and his change up is legitimately one of the best individual pitches you'll ever see. If he can stay healthy, his floor is a number 4 innings eater that will flash brilliance. Zavala is 20 years old and has a beautiful, effortless swing and plus, plus plate discipline. Both of them have a legitimate shot at being contributors on good teams. Zavala isn't the type of high ceiling no floor prospect we've featured over the last 20 years. He's a very high floor, disciplined hitter with exceptional fundamentals. Give it a little time and try to have some faith. What's the worst that can happen? They have to fill those positions via trade or free agency...see (2013-2016, or 2022-24 and ongoing). We still don't have plus defenders in SS and CF after Robert...Fletcher's speed/range limits him to RF but bat doesn't play on a corner. Zavala has a ton of value if he could just be a 725-750 non negative fielding CFer, that's a 2.5-3.0ish fWAR guy. Thorpe simply can't get behind in counts and throw FBs...it all depends on command/control with his secondary offerings. And then it's actually harder to pitch speeds down to the 78-82 mph range for the ideal 10+phone differential from FB to change/curve. Throwing a low to mid 80s slider or cutter off that FB will get him killed unless he's super precise with location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 49 minutes ago, TaylorStSox said: The Cease trade looks bad now, but it's still way too early to give up on Thorpe and Zavala. Yeah, Thorpe maxes out at 92, but his MiLB stats are undeniable and his change up is legitimately one of the best individual pitches you'll ever see. If he can stay healthy, his floor is a number 4 innings eater that will flash brilliance. Zavala is 20 years old and has a beautiful, effortless swing and plus, plus plate discipline. Both of them have a legitimate shot at being contributors on good teams. Zavala isn't the type of high ceiling no floor prospect we've featured over the last 20 years. He's a very high floor, disciplined hitter with exceptional fundamentals. Give it a little time and try to have some faith. What's the worst that can happen? Last year in the bigs, Thorpe’s changeup had a K rate of 25%, a walk rate of 10%, a BB/K of 0.42, and a wRC+ of 73. Johan Santana’s change had a 34.3% K rate, a 4.1 % walk rate, a BB/K of 0.12, and a wRC+ of 49. That’s a legit pitch. In his best seasons these go nuts. In his first year on Fangraphs, 2007, Santana threw 267 changeups and this led to 52 strikeouts. Last year, Thorpe threw 256 changeups and it led to 17 strikeouts. I don’t even want to bother with his best seasons, it becomes vomit inducing. And that was in a league with a massively lower strikeout rate. Best pitch I’ve ever seen? You do NOT want me to post Chris Sale’s slider stats. You just don’t. Humans shouldn’t do that to other humans. If it’s that important to Getz and Bannister that no one compares Thorpe’s changeups to a legitimate pitch, he can put me on the payroll like his defenders. I’m open to offers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TaylorStSox Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 29 minutes ago, Balta1701 said: Last year in the bigs, Thorpe’s changeup had a K rate of 25%, a walk rate of 10%, a BB/K of 0.42, and a wRC+ of 73. Johan Santana’s change had a 34.3% K rate, a 4.1 % walk rate, a BB/K of 0.12, and a wRC+ of 49. That’s a legit pitch. In his best seasons these go nuts. In his first year on Fangraphs, 2007, Santana threw 267 changeups and this led to 52 strikeouts. Last year, Thorpe threw 256 changeups and it led to 17 strikeouts. I don’t even want to bother with his best seasons, it becomes vomit inducing. And that was in a league with a massively lower strikeout rate. Best pitch I’ve ever seen? You do NOT want me to post Chris Sale’s slider stats. You just don’t. Humans shouldn’t do that to other humans. If it’s that important to Getz and Bannister that no one compares Thorpe’s changeups to a legitimate pitch, he can put me on the payroll like his defenders. I’m open to offers. I said it's one of the better pitches you'll ever see. Pitching matrix and and pitching ninja would agree. His changeup is just nasty. Drew Thorpe has 44 IP in MLB, 11 of which while injured. Obviously its odd to say a player that doesn't throw hard has great stuff, but Maddux slider and cutter would disagree, as would Hoffman's change. It is possible. Comparing him to Johan Santana seems a bit unfair. In Santana's rookie season, he posted a 6.5 ERA over 86 IP. Sometimes players adjust and get better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 Gio change Buehrle change Cease slider Contreras fork ball Sasaki splitter...you need to have a pitch THAT good if you throw 90/92. Liriano death slider at 90-92 in 2006 before he blew out his elbow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TaylorStSox Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 6 minutes ago, caulfield12 said: Gio change Buehrle change Cease slider Contreras fork ball Sasaki splitter...you need to have a pitch THAT good if you throw 90/92. Liriano death slider at 90-92 in 2006 before he blew out his elbow. His FB and change don't bother me, it's the lack of a third pitch. If his cutter or curve don't develop further, it's leaves him no margin for error and then his ceiling becomes Keith Foulke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 54 minutes ago, TaylorStSox said: His FB and change don't bother me, it's the lack of a third pitch. If his cutter or curve don't develop further, it's leaves him no margin for error and then his ceiling becomes Keith Foulke. I think almost anyone would be elated to get 12+ fWAR out of Thorpe for his Sox career. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 https://www.mlb.com/news/ranking-the-best-position-groups-for-2025 Three strongest positions in MLB are SS RP (Guardians with top 2 in Clase and Smith) and RF. Maybe both Montgomery's are the two future solutions there...but these three areas are not coincidentally the Sox org's three weakest current areas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 6 hours ago, TaylorStSox said: I said it's one of the better pitches you'll ever see. Pitching matrix and and pitching ninja would agree. His changeup is just nasty. Drew Thorpe has 44 IP in MLB, 11 of which while injured. Obviously its odd to say a player that doesn't throw hard has great stuff, but Maddux slider and cutter would disagree, as would Hoffman's change. It is possible. Comparing him to Johan Santana seems a bit unfair. In Santana's rookie season, he posted a 6.5 ERA over 86 IP. Sometimes players adjust and get better. Oh you want Hoffman’s changeup? First year where there is data on FG is again 2007. 200 changeups that year, 29 strikeouts on it, 1 walk. 11 wRC+ against it. Over the last 4 years of his career, ages 39-42, overall wRC+ against his changeup was 29. Tommy Kahnle’s changeup so has been more effective than Thorpe’s, but Thorpe’s is “one of the better pitches we’ve seen”? Seriously how did you guys get hired for this, I could use the extra cash for posting stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 8 hours ago, TaylorStSox said: The Cease trade looks bad now, but it's still way too early to give up on Thorpe and Zavala. Yeah, Thorpe maxes out at 92, but his MiLB stats are undeniable and his change up is legitimately one of the best individual pitches you'll ever see. If he can stay healthy, his floor is a number 4 innings eater that will flash brilliance. Zavala is 20 years old and has a beautiful, effortless swing and plus, plus plate discipline. Both of them have a legitimate shot at being contributors on good teams. Zavala isn't the type of high ceiling no floor prospect we've featured over the last 20 years. He's a very high floor, disciplined hitter with exceptional fundamentals. Give it a little time and try to have some faith. What's the worst that can happen? Wow. Whatever you get paid, it is too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 (edited) "Thorpe uses his changeup 35% of the time, the most of any pitch in his arsenal. It comes in at an average of 82 mph, which offers a drastic change of speed from his 91 mph fastball. His changeup has accounted for 28% of his strikeouts whole producing a nearly 40% whiff rate. Opponents are also hitting just .154 off of it. “He learned his changeup plays three times in a row to certain guys,” White Sox manager Pedro Grifol told reporters on Monday. “Normally that doesn’t happen because you don’t throw the same pitch three times in a row.” Seeing is believing right now with his current health status... https://www.sportsmockery.com/chicago-white-sox/drew-thorpes-changeup-quickly-turning-heads-across-the-mlb/ Edited February 2 by caulfield12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleAleSox Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 51 minutes ago, southsider2k5 said: Wow. Whatever you get paid, it is too much. What he is saying might be a little overkill, but I remember articles from when the trade happening saying it was the best single pitch in the minors at the time or something like that. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 (edited) Manny Machado admitted Saturday he is "disappointed" the San Diego Padres haven't made any significant moves after losing players like Ha-Seong Kim and Tanner Scott to free agency this offseason. "Are we disappointed we haven't made any moves? Yeah," Machado said. www.si.com/mlb/manny-machado-candidly-addresses-padres-lack-of-moves&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwj8vdPKo6WLAxV_IEQIHRgINikQFnoECAkQAg&usg=AOvVaw0dLDWGHtBMO4Y7Fe2Z5kXS Edited February 2 by caulfield12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 2 hours ago, PaleAleSox said: What he is saying might be a little overkill, but I remember articles from when the trade happening saying it was the best single pitch in the minors at the time or something like that. He was listed by Jim Callis as “also in the running” for best changeup in the minors in their pre 2024 list (along with 3 other guys) but Dylan Lesko was listed as the best several times in a row. I would buy that you saw him listed as the best changeup in the White Sox’s system, maybe best pitch in the white Sox’s system because Schultz hasn’t moved up the lists on tools yet. Not league wide though or on all pitches, Paul Skenes exists. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Allen Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 Clearly missing the boat on Thorpe, and if you don't think Sammy Zavala and his career .174 average in high A is not going to be a contributor to good MLB teams, you're a racist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 31 minutes ago, Dick Allen said: Clearly missing the boat on Thorpe, and if you don't think Sammy Zavala and his career .174 average in high A is not going to be a contributor to good MLB teams, you're a racist. Thorpe could wind up a perfectly cromulent pitcher and calling his changeup one of the best pitches you’ll ever see would still be pretty embarrassing right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestEddy Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 36 minutes ago, Dick Allen said: Clearly missing the boat on Thorpe, and if you don't think Sammy Zavala and his career .174 average in high A is not going to be a contributor to good MLB teams, you're a racist. I post my drunken, bizarre comments in the wee hours. Is this the Mimosas talking? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestEddy Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 Old frenemy alert: As @JonHeyman just referenced, Nicky Lopez is signing a minor league deal with the Cubs, sources tell ESPN.— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) February 2, 2025 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleAleSox Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 No idea what the Cubs are doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestEddy Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 8 minutes ago, PaleAleSox said: No idea what the Cubs are doing. I think they're still in on Bregman. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleAleSox Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 11 minutes ago, WestEddy said: I think they're still in on Bregman. Signing him to a six year deal would be so stupid. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Sacamano Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 21 minutes ago, PaleAleSox said: Signing him to a six year deal would be so stupid. I hope they do it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Sacamano Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 33 minutes ago, PaleAleSox said: No idea what the Cubs are doing. Minor league deal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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