I hate the idea of picking a catcher high. 150 games >> than 120 games. PLUS the annual wear and tear. Not many make it a long time. No he can't catch 120 and then CF for 30 - catchers need a break all together.

NOW, if they thought he actually can move off C and go full time as a plus CF, then I am certainly way more open to the idea. Otherwise I am all Roch still.

1 hour ago, hi8is said:

Talk about a first

Daulton Varsho

1 hour ago, Squirmin' for Yermin said:

I hate the idea of picking a catcher high. 150 games >> than 120 games. PLUS the annual wear and tear. Not many make it a long time. No he can't catch 120 and then CF for 30 - catchers need a break all together.

NOW, if they thought he actually can move off C and go full time as a plus CF, then I am certainly way more open to the idea. Otherwise I am all Roch still.

Not a pro scout obviously but catcher just seems the closest thing a postion player gets to TINSSAAPP. So much development still to do and a grueling position.

Interesting to see the Sox highlighting Emerson today through our Chuck.

34 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

Daulton Varsho

Crazy, I didn’t realize Varsho regularly plays center and catches… talk about a rare combo.

15 minutes ago, hi8is said:

Crazy, I didn’t realize Varsho regularly plays center and catches… talk about a rare combo.

He hasn't caught since 2022.

I'm a believer in going after the most athletic and versatile, in terms of different positions they could play, player. I want players that can run and can play good to great defense. Can Chowlowsky play anywhere but SS? If not where are you putting Colson? What about Carlson? I'm sure Venable is going to have a huge say in who is picked and because of that I will trust whomever that is. I think he has a real good feel for the game today and especially his own team.

25 minutes ago, brijames1957 said:

I'm a believer in going after the most athletic and versatile, in terms of different positions they could play, player. I want players that can run and can play good to great defense. Can Chowlowsky play anywhere but SS? If not where are you putting Colson? What about Carlson? I'm sure Venable is going to have a huge say in who is picked and because of that I will trust whomever that is. I think he has a real good feel for the game today and especially his own team.

If you pick Roch, it has to be to make him the SS. As for Carlson, I will be stunned if he’s still in the organization in two years.

3 minutes ago, fathom said:

If you pick Roch, it has to be to make him the SS. As for Carlson, I will be stunned if he’s still in the organization in two years.

Would it be much of a difference if Roch played 3B with Montgomery staying at SS, assuming Colson’s back holds up? For all we know, Vargas could be playing 1B by then if Murakami doesn’t re-sign.

8 minutes ago, fathom said:

If you pick Roch, it has to be to make him the SS. As for Carlson, I will be stunned if he’s still in the organization in two years.

Well, the Astros took SS Bregman and put him at 3B.
A high value SS prospect should be worth 2 high value pitching prospects (re Carlson and his future). And of course he is ++++ on defense, so if he can hit, look out.
And the logjam will occur before Carlson is ready: it will be the convergence of Roch, Bonemer and maybe Bergola with Meidroth, Montgomery and Vargas....with some Gonzalez in there.

Edited Tuesday at 09:35 PM2 days by GreenSox

37 minutes ago, fathom said:

If you pick Roch, it has to be to make him the SS. As for Carlson, I will be stunned if he’s still in the organization in two years.

So then Montgomery to 3rd and Vargis to where? You have to resign Murakami and I have little doubt that doesn't happen if Ishbia has any say in it.

I wouldn't go as far as @fathom on Carlson, but you 100% can't be factoring him into the Bigs in any capacity yet. Dude is in Low-A and has a long development path going forward. He's not some slam dunk sure thing.

41 minutes ago, DirtySox said:

I wouldn't go as far as @fathom on Carlson, but you 100% can't be factoring him into the Bigs in any capacity yet. Dude is in Low-A and has a long development path going forward. He's not some slam dunk sure thing.

Seriously. Until he starts showing success in the high minors, people need to pretend he doesn't exist.

2 hours ago, GreenSox said:

Well, the Astros took SS Bregman and put him at 3B.
A high value SS prospect should be worth 2 high value pitching prospects (re Carlson and his future). And of course he is ++++ on defense, so if he can hit, look out.
And the logjam will occur before Carlson is ready: it will be the convergence of Roch, Bonemer and maybe Bergola with Meidroth, Montgomery and Vargas....with some Gonzalez in there.

I’ve read a couple of articles comparing Bonemer to Bregman and Roch compared to Carlos Correa. That wouldn’t be too bad.

2 hours ago, GreenSox said:

Well, the Astros took SS Bregman and put him at 3B.
A high value SS prospect should be worth 2 high value pitching prospects (re Carlson and his future). And of course he is ++++ on defense, so if he can hit, look out.
And the logjam will occur before Carlson is ready: it will be the convergence of Roch, Bonemer and maybe Bergola with Meidroth, Montgomery and Vargas....with some Gonzalez in there.

Didn’t Machado also play 3B when he first came up? And then moved back to SS when someone left (JJ Hardy maybe?)

3 hours ago, Bob Sacamano said:

He hasn't caught since 2022.

Classic Caulfield 😆😆😆

6 minutes ago, hi8is said:

Classic Caulfield 😆😆😆

Ummm…what other current catcher has had a position change from C to CF? He’s the closest. And he did go back and forth in the early part of his career before they settled on the change to outfield.

Nobody has managed that switch since of regular/full-time players…just super utility guys with 600ish ops numbers.

16 minutes ago, Bob Sacamano said:

Didn’t Machado also play 3B when he first came up? And then moved back to SS when someone left (JJ Hardy maybe?)

JJ Hardy…who some want in the HoF for defense alone.

15 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

Ummm…what other current catcher has had a position change from C to CF? He’s the closest. And he did go back and forth in the early part of his career before they settled on the change to outfield.

Nobody has managed that switch since of regular/full-time players…just super utility guys with 600ish ops numbers.

Seemed to me you were referencing him splitting games and playing catcher and centerfield regularly day to day.

2 minutes ago, hi8is said:

Seemed to me you were referencing him splitting games and playing catcher and centerfield regularly day to day.

2020-21

https://www.thebaseballcube.com/content/player/196518/

3 hours ago, GreenSox said:

Well, the Astros took SS Bregman and put him at 3B.
A high value SS prospect should be worth 2 high value pitching prospects (re Carlson and his future). And of course he is ++++ on defense, so if he can hit, look out.
And the logjam will occur before Carlson is ready: it will be the convergence of Roch, Bonemer and maybe Bergola with Meidroth, Montgomery and Vargas....with some Gonzalez in there.

Gonzalez has proved that first rounders usually get a ton of runway.

High schoolers usually at least 4-5 years…if not six.

40 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

2020-21

https://www.thebaseballcube.com/content/player/196518/

Shows how rare it is and how unsustainable the idea is.

Hard to watch the Getz draft interview and not think they’re taking Roch

Moving Colson off of SS would be malpractice on the Sox part, but we have already seen how the Sox feel about him at SS despite his elite performance over there so wouldn't surprise me. Colson Montgomery has the BEST range amongst all shortstops in MLB. The 100th percentile of range. He's 4th in baseball in FRV (Fielding run value), 3rd in defensive value (FG). We're talking about one of the five best defenders in the game, not just as Shortstop.

For all the fun this team has had, they still do completely inexplicable things. Playing Colson at a place not named SS, bunting constantly in the early game, not drafting Buster Posey 2.0.

Edited Wednesday at 11:42 AM2 days by Look at Ray Ray Run

13 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

Moving Colson off of SS would be malpractice on the Sox part, but we have already seen how the Sox feel about him at SS despite his elite performance over there so wouldn't surprise me. Colson Montgomery has the BEST range amongst all shortstops in MLB. The 100th percentile of range. He's 4th in baseball in FRV (Fielding run value), 3rd in defensive value (FG). We're talking about one of the five best defenders in the game, not just as Shortstop.

For all the fun this team has had, they still do completely inexplicable things. Playing Colson at a place not named SS, bunting constantly in the early game, not drafting Buster Posey 2.0.

How do the Sox feel about him exactly? You honestly think they feel he isn’t a high end defensive SS because they play him at 3B some? If not, why do you think they keep doing this? Do they just like playing guys out of their optimized spots for fun? You must have some theory on the why behind this malpractice.

Also, several cracks in your post. Colson definitely does NOT have the best range amongst SS’s per Statcast. Witt’s OAA is more than double Colson’s and is hands down the best. And while I do think Colson is a tremendous defensive SS, it’s funny that you ignore DRS where he’s currently at -1. Most importantly, Colson has also been elite at 3B, which is part of the reason his OAA is in the 100th percentile (that isn’t just SS). SSS, but when adjusted for playing time, his 3B defenses would amongst the very best by both OAA/FRV & DRS.

If you compare Colson’s fWAR per PA, it’s nearly identical between SS & 3B right now (and that’s using Statcast defensive data). As such, from a total value consideration, when Vargas or Murakami needs a day off, the question becomes who is the best backup at SS or 3B since Colson can provide high value at both spots. And it’s very clear they don’t love their other 3B options from a defensive standpoint, which is why we’ve seen Colson shift to 3B in such scenarios. So Venable isn’t really an idiot, but trying to optimize the roster as currently constructed. When Murray was on the bench, Venable kept Colson at SS when Vargas or Murakami needed time off and would play Tanner at 3B.

I will not defend the relentless bunting as I find it to be incredibly stupid, but I refuse to be upset about a manager rotating around a guy between two spots he’s extremely good at defensively to optimize the broader lineup.