Team Breakout Article

[Tony]

3 minutes ago, Harry Chappas said:

Agreed 100%.  Hawks seem to have ducks lined up hopefully the Sox are following suit but at this point neither occupy significant amount of my time. 

 

 

I love the Blackhawks but haven't sat down to watch a game in like 3, 4 years. I understand what they are trying to do but it when their season ends, it will be six years in a row of not making the playoffs, and even the last few years they did make the playoffs, the team was garbage. It just wears you down over time. 

[Kyyle23]

17 minutes ago, Tony said:

Was just talking about this with my dad a few days ago. 

I remember being at a wedding a few years ago, talking to some old friends from high school I hadn't seen in a long time. We were all big sports guys, and I asked him if he still follows the teams like we used to. He said not as much, and I said the same thing, which was true. 

Then this Bears season came along and reminded me how much I still do care, how much I enjoyed thinking about each game throughout the week, making sure I was in front of the TV at kickoff. And even in the last week, the discussions continuing about what they do in the offseason, etc. 

My "big three" teams are the Sox-Hawks-Bears. Combined, those franchises have given us very few things to get excited about over. Before the Bears beat Green Bay, the last time I saw a team I root for advance in the playoffs was during the 2014-2015 Blackhawks season. (Bulls are actually in the exact same spot, their last playoff series win was in 2014-2015 as well.)

The "optimists" here are convinced those that are critical of the Sox just want to be miserable, which simply isn't true. Just give us something to be hopeful about. 

I hate being miserable about this team.  Misery has long given away to apathy, and now I’m just watching what appears to be a lot of deck chair moving.  I won’t be surprised if they lose 90+ again this season.  It’s going to take a lot of these kids figuring it out all at once, and you rarely see that kind of jump.  I’m not saying it’s impossible but it’s not very probable.  
 

and another thing about my opinion on this team: im not trying to convince anyone here to follow along, im not criticizing you if you believe they are gonna win 90, it doesn’t matter to me.  If you want to believe it, go ahead.  My comment about WBWSF saying tra la la the white Sox are coming is true, he has said that every season I have known him including the last 3

[southsider2k5]

30 minutes ago, Kyyle23 said:

I hate being miserable about this team.  Misery has long given away to apathy, and now I’m just watching what appears to be a lot of deck chair moving.  I won’t be surprised if they lose 90+ again this season.  It’s going to take a lot of these kids figuring it out all at once, and you rarely see that kind of jump.  I’m not saying it’s impossible but it’s not very probable.  
 

and another thing about my opinion on this team: im not trying to convince anyone here to follow along, im not criticizing you if you believe they are gonna win 90, it doesn’t matter to me.  If you want to believe it, go ahead.  My comment about WBWSF saying tra la la the white Sox are coming is true, he has said that every season I have known him including the last 3

 

 

[WhiteSox2023]

9 minutes ago, southsider2k5 said:

 

 

They have been coming for almost 6 years straight?  Impressive.

[Lip Man 1]

57 minutes ago, WhiteSox2023 said:

They have been coming for almost 6 years straight?  Impressive.

I remember when I had my first beer too! 😆

Sometimes I honestly think he does this to get a response because no one can be a baseball fan for a long time and think this under this ownership. 

[Baron]

2 hours ago, Tony said:

I love the Blackhawks but haven't sat down to watch a game in like 3, 4 years. I understand what they are trying to do but it when their season ends, it will be six years in a row of not making the playoffs, and even the last few years they did make the playoffs, the team was garbage. It just wears you down over time. 

They have a long long way to go. 

[Tnetennba]

Toxic positivity is a thing 🤦🏽‍♀️

[Sleepy Harold]

9 hours ago, WhiteSox2023 said:

They have been coming for almost 6 years straight?  Impressive.

The Chicago White Sox: Kings of edging

[WhiteSox2023]

5 hours ago, Sleepy Harold said:

The Chicago White Sox: Kings of edging

It’s gonna be like the Randy Marsh South Park meme when they finally finish…  errr, win.

Edited 14 hours ago by WhiteSox2023

[Dick Allen]

17 hours ago, WestEddy said:

Nobody has ever signed a player to a $40B contract. Pretending to make a mistake in numbers only points out how desperate detractors are to play down the White Sox' great off-season. I have Geek Squad over here right now, cleaning up my keyboard and making sure my "A" key is ready for the workout when everybody starts posting their "grade the White Sox' offseason", and I start pounding that button. 

And nobody said that Getz and Boyer were "begging" Reinsdorf to invest in his team. Every interview I've listened to lays it out as "an opportunity opened up, and we went to JR to explain what was going on. He was sold before we finished." 

Thanks Schriff.

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

21 hours ago, WestEddy said:

Nobody has ever signed a player to a $40B contract. Pretending to make a mistake in numbers only points out how desperate detractors are to play down the White Sox' great off-season. I have Geek Squad over here right now, cleaning up my keyboard and making sure my "A" key is ready for the workout when everybody starts posting their "grade the White Sox' offseason", and I start pounding that button. 

And nobody said that Getz and Boyer were "begging" Reinsdorf to invest in his team. Every interview I've listened to lays it out as "an opportunity opened up, and we went to JR to explain what was going on. He was sold before we finished." 

A "great offseason?"

Incredible. Jeeze guy, have a little more self respect and higher expectations.

[ChiSoxFanMike]

22 hours ago, WestEddy said:

Nobody has ever signed a player to a $40B contract. Pretending to make a mistake in numbers only points out how desperate detractors are to play down the White Sox' great off-season. I have Geek Squad over here right now, cleaning up my keyboard and making sure my "A" key is ready for the workout when everybody starts posting their "grade the White Sox' offseason", and I start pounding that button. 

And nobody said that Getz and Boyer were "begging" Reinsdorf to invest in his team. Every interview I've listened to lays it out as "an opportunity opened up, and we went to JR to explain what was going on. He was sold before we finished." 

“Great off-season” is a stretch. I’d say it’s like a B or B- offseason as of now. Still have massive holes in the rotation and all the outfield spots.

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

2 minutes ago, ChiSoxFanMike said:

“Great off-season” is a stretch. I’d say it’s like a B or B- offseason as of now. Still have massive holes in the rotation and all the outfield spots.

You guys are all really kind.

The Sox have signed four players. 2 relievers, a guy who signed for less than Jorge Polanco, and a possible SP.

They came in with a bottom 3 payroll despite not being a bottom 3 market or revenue team, and they still have a bottom 3 payroll. I'm not sure how anyone can give this teams offseason a positive grade given their payroll and general investment in the roster. We are just so desperate for something good or positive...

They've lowered the bar so low, and it's somehow worked on many fans.

[Bob Sacamano]

5 minutes ago, ChiSoxFanMike said:

“Great off-season” is a stretch. I’d say it’s like a B or B- offseason as of now. Still have massive holes in the rotation and all the outfield spots.

I don’t see how you can give it a B and then say there are holes in all 3 OF spots

[ChiSoxFanMike]

1 minute ago, Bob Sacamano said:

I don’t see how you can give it a B and then say there are holes in all 3 OF spots

I think Murakami was a fantastic signing and I’m also a fan of the pitching signings they have made. They just need to spend more to fill in the rest of the gaps.

[ChiSoxFanMike]

5 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

You guys are all really kind.

The Sox have signed four players. 2 relievers, a guy who signed for less than Jorge Polanco, and a possible SP.

They came in with a bottom 3 payroll despite not being a bottom 3 market or revenue team, and they still have a bottom 3 payroll. I'm not sure how anyone can give this teams offseason a positive grade given their payroll and general investment in the roster. We are just so desperate for something good or positive...

They've lowered the bar so low, and it's somehow worked on many fans.

Yes I do have low standards. I learned my lesson during the Machado/Harper saga to keep my expectations in check when it comes to this team signing the top free agents. It is what it is. Hopefully it changes when Ishbia takes over.

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

2 minutes ago, ChiSoxFanMike said:

I think Murakami was a fantastic signing and I’m also a fan of the pitching signings they have made. They just need to spend more to fill in the rest of the gaps.

I really don't get this attitude about the Murakami signing. Do you think other teams and fans are talking about how signing Jorge Polanco and Cody Pence made their off-season great? Of course not. 

The worst part of Murakami is if he's great, he probably won't even be here when the Sox are good. There's also a very real possibility he can't cut it in the MLB. The difference between Polanco and Murakami is Murakami's unknown gives him a higher perceived ceiling, but his range of outcomes makes him a riskier signing. The White Sox don't deserve an A or B until they actually spend some REAL cash.

[ChiSoxFanMike]

2 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

I really don't get this attitude about the Murakami signing. Do you think other teams and fans are talking about how signing Jorge Polanco and Cody Pence made their off-season great? Of course not. 

The worst part of Murakami is if he's great, he probably won't even be here when the Sox are good. There's also a very real possibility he can't cut it in the MLB. The difference between Polanco and Murakami is Murakami's unknown gives him a higher perceived ceiling, but his range of outcomes makes him a riskier signing. The White Sox don't deserve an A or B until they actually spend some REAL cash.

Jorge Polanco is 32 years old and a known commodity. Is he a good player? Yeah. But he also is what he is at this point and will never be a star.

Murakami on the other hand is only 26. Is there a possibility he doesn’t translate to MLB? Yeah. It’s a risky signing for sure. But the Sox are in the position to take risks and opening up the Japanese pipeline again isn’t a bad thing. As far as if he’s good, I’ll worry about that in 2 years. 

[WhiteSox2023]

16 minutes ago, ChiSoxFanMike said:

Jorge Polanco is 32 years old and a known commodity. Is he a good player? Yeah. But he also is what he is at this point and will never be a star.

Murakami on the other hand is only 26. Is there a possibility he doesn’t translate to MLB? Yeah. It’s a risky signing for sure. But the Sox are in the position to take risks and opening up the Japanese pipeline again isn’t a bad thing. As far as if he’s good, I’ll worry about that in 2 years. 

In the recent Getz interview, Getz said that signing Murakami to a 5-year deal at this point wasn’t realistic.  Kaplan blurted out, “you could just extend him if he’s good!”  Really?  So you can’t afford to give Murakami a 5-year deal when he’s an unknown quantity but you can afford to extend him in 2 years if he’s breaks out?  Yeah…

More like they didn’t want to give an unknown a 5-year deal and likely won’t be able to extend him in 2 years if he’s breaks out.

Edited 8 hours ago by WhiteSox2023

[fathom]

35 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

I really don't get this attitude about the Murakami signing. Do you think other teams and fans are talking about how signing Jorge Polanco and Cody Pence made their off-season great? Of course not. 

The worst part of Murakami is if he's great, he probably won't even be here when the Sox are good. There's also a very real possibility he can't cut it in the MLB. The difference between Polanco and Murakami is Murakami's unknown gives him a higher perceived ceiling, but his range of outcomes makes him a riskier signing. The White Sox don't deserve an A or B until they actually spend some REAL cash.

Let’s be honest, if he’s better than expected, he will be playing for the Dodgers after the Sox trade him.  I’m excited to watch him play, but I would never buy a jersey for a guy who will be here for two years max.

[ChiSoxFanMike]

20 minutes ago, WhiteSox2023 said:

In the recent Getz interview, Getz said that signing Murakami to a 5-year deal at this point wasn’t realistic.  Kaplan blurted out, “you could just extend him if he’s good!”  Really?  So you can’t afford to give Murakami a 5-year deal when he’s an unknown quantity but you can afford to extend him in 2 years if he’s breaks out?  Yeah…

More like they didn’t want to give an unknown a 5-year deal and likely won’t be able to extend him in 2 years if he’s breaks out.

The White Sox situation could be entirely different in 2 years depending on how involved Ishbia becomes. I’m not going to worry about it for now.

[WestEddy]

5 hours ago, Dick Allen said:

Thanks Schriff.

No Problem, Pedro. 

[WhiteSox2023]

8 minutes ago, fathom said:

Let’s be honest, if he’s better than expected, he will be playing for the Dodgers after the Sox trade him.  I’m excited to watch him play, but I would never buy a jersey for a guy who will be here for two years max.

Exactly.  Murakami jerseys will sell well regardless but it’s probably realistically the worst jersey to buy outside of any other vet the Sox sign on a 1-year deal.

If he sucks, you won’t want the jersey.  If he’s good, you have a cool jersey for two years until he replaces Freddie Freeman.  Freeman’s contract just so happens to expire after the 2027 season, right when Murakami becomes a free agent.

Edited 7 hours ago by WhiteSox2023

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

5 minutes ago, fathom said:

Let’s be honest, if he’s better than expected, he will be playing for the Dodgers after the Sox trade him.  I’m excited to watch him play, but I would never buy a jersey for a guy who will be here for two years max.

I definitely agree I'm excited to watch him play --- the unknown is always exciting, because you can dream on it.

I'm just not going to call the off-season a huge success because they spent 34 million on someone who likely wouldn't be part of the next competitive team. Everyone's been telling me how they shouldn't sign Bader because he wouldn't be part of the next Sox team that was good, yet they're excited about Murakami. Just odd.

[WestEddy]

50 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

You guys are all really kind.

The Sox have signed four players. 2 relievers, a guy who signed for less than Jorge Polanco, and a possible SP.

They came in with a bottom 3 payroll despite not being a bottom 3 market or revenue team, and they still have a bottom 3 payroll. I'm not sure how anyone can give this teams offseason a positive grade given their payroll and general investment in the roster. We are just so desperate for something good or positive...

They've lowered the bar so low, and it's somehow worked on many fans.

You said nothing about the actual baseball team in that vomit. You should try getting into baseball instead of spread sheets. The game is much more fun off paper.