6 minutes ago, Kyyle23 said:

I am just observing year four of signing bottom tier free agents with the intention of flipping them, a suspect pitching staff, and a young and unproven lineup.  You are free to believe that they are gonna be a lot better.  I don’t

It's the same old, is the glass half empty or half full puzzle.  I'm just suggesting it's more fun to buy into the idea that the glass is filling quickly.  

10 hours ago, oldsox said:

I saw an article on my phone yesterday that was interesting. It listed the 5 teams most likely to have a breakout season, They were

 

Braves

Orioles

Pirates

Sox

Cubs

It didn't say anything we already didn't know, but it did predict a 10 game increase in Wins. The Pirates should be interesting this year.

maybe you imagined it

last season and this season I've come across the A's being one of those teams

breakout is a vague description, they way injuries are sports is very hard to predict

The Sox and many other teams lack depth when it comes to injuries.  

Edited January 27Jan 27 by kitekrazy

1 hour ago, Kyyle23 said:

I am just observing year four of signing bottom tier free agents with the intention of flipping them, a suspect pitching staff, and a young and unproven lineup.  You are free to believe that they are gonna be a lot better.  I don’t

It's the time of year where people can dream, and I miss being that guy! Seriously.

Although having expectations usually means more disappointment, so id rather be surprised. I'm thinking this team is more likely to lose 100 than they are to win even 70. 

2 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

It's the time of year where people can dream, and I miss being that guy! Seriously.

Although having expectations usually means more disappointment, so id rather be surprised. I'm thinking this team is more likely to lose 100 than they are to win even 70. 

.500 is just beyond that horizon.....be that guy, again

1 hour ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

It's the time of year where people can dream, and I miss being that guy! Seriously.

Although having expectations usually means more disappointment, so id rather be surprised. I'm thinking this team is more likely to lose 100 than they are to win even 70. 

I miss being that guy too.  I wish this organization didn’t revert to whatever this is, but it’s been an unpleasant stretch for sure 

1 hour ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

It's the time of year where people can dream, and I miss being that guy! Seriously.

Although having expectations usually means more disappointment, so id rather be surprised. I'm thinking this team is more likely to lose 100 than they are to win even 70. 

 

11 minutes ago, Kyyle23 said:

I miss being that guy too.  I wish this organization didn’t revert to whatever this is, but it’s been an unpleasant stretch for sure 

Shhhh not too loud. Don’t want to upset people for having higher standards!

42 minutes ago, Kyyle23 said:

I miss being that guy too.  I wish this organization didn’t revert to whatever this is, but it’s been an unpleasant stretch for sure 

Absolutely.   One more, "Baby, I can change!  This times it's different! " just isn't enough anymore.   

1 hour ago, Kyyle23 said:

I miss being that guy too.  I wish this organization didn’t revert to whatever this is, but it’s been an unpleasant stretch for sure 

You give me an 80 win team and I'll best-case-scenario my way to 92 wins in a heart beat. You give me a 63 win team and I cant take you seriously or waste my time investing the time into watching. 

3 hours ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

It's the time of year where people can dream, and I miss being that guy! Seriously.

Although having expectations usually means more disappointment, so id rather be surprised. I'm thinking this team is more likely to lose 100 than they are to win even 70. 

I joined this board to discuss White Sox prospects when the system was headlined by Daniel Hudson, Jared Mitchell and Tyler Flowers.

They had to beat the optimism out of me.

7 hours ago, Kyyle23 said:

I am just observing year four of signing bottom tier free agents with the intention of flipping them, a suspect pitching staff, and a young and unproven lineup.  You are free to believe that they are gonna be a lot better.  I don’t

bottom tier free agents? how do the white sox signings compare to every other team in the AL central?

4 hours ago, nrockway said:

bottom tier free agents? how do the white sox signings compare to every other team in the AL central?

How would you describe the tier of free agents that the white Sox have signed on our run of 100 loss seasons.  

The team might be somewhat better but as long as Reinsdork remains owner they will never be close to being contenders.

Edited January 28Jan 28 by The Mighty Mite

1 hour ago, The Mighty Mite said:

The team might be somewhat better but as long as Reinsdork remains owner they will never be close to being contenders.

I googled Justin Ishbia's net worth and it's at approximately $5.4 billion. I do not know how accurate that is but let's go with it. Reinsdork is going to muck up the works for 3 more years? Let's take a conservative outlook on Ishbia's net worth with growth at 4% annually for 3 years, he would be north of $6 billion when Reinsdork walks away.

 

 

 

5 hours ago, nrockway said:

bottom tier free agents? how do the white sox signings compare to every other team in the AL central?

Considering the White Sox payroll has decreased from its peak of $193 million in 2022 to currently $77 million (after the signing of Seranthony Dominguez) over the past 4 seasons, @Kyyle23 is spot on.  Do you really need to even make a comparison to other teams in the AL Central to realize that this is true?  This article and excerpt below is from last week, prior to the Dominguez signing.  You don’t decrease your team payroll from its peak to one of the lowest in baseball over 4 years by signing mostly higher tier free agents in that time span.

Quote

RosterResource had the South Siders at about $87MM in terms of 2026 payroll prior to moving Robert. That’s now dropped to about $67MM. The White Sox’ franchise-record Opening Day payroll, set back in 2022, is $193MM.

Edited January 28Jan 28 by WhiteSox2023

5 minutes ago, Falstaff said:

I googled Justin Ishbia's net worth and it's at approximately $5.4 billion. I do not know how accurate that is but let's go with it. Reinsdork is going to muck up the works for 3 more years? Let's take a conservative outlook on Ishbia's net worth with growth at 4% annually for 3 years, he would be north of $6 billion when Reinsdork walks away.

 

 

 

My take on this is that you think Ishbia is going to open up his pocketbook before he actually takes control, let’s hope that happens.

2 hours ago, Kyyle23 said:

How would you describe the tier of free agents that the white Sox have signed on our run of 100 loss seasons.  

7 hours ago, nrockway said:

bottom tier free agents? how do the white sox signings compare to every other team in the AL central?

Tier, by definition,  is more than one team.  Trying to make the Sox look better,  by pointing strays at teams in much smaller markets just makes the point of how bad the Sox have been.  Even their biggest contract of the winter (a massive 40 billion, no wait, million) almost didn't happen until the front office went into Jerry’s office and begged him into signing a deal somewhere around 15 to 20% of initial expectations.

This is one of last remaining teams in MLB to not have a single nine figure deal, again, bottom tier.

Feel optimism all you like, but don't gaslight the obvious. 

1 hour ago, Falstaff said:

I googled Justin Ishbia's net worth and it's at approximately $5.4 billion. I do not know how accurate that is but let's go with it. Reinsdork is going to muck up the works for 3 more years? Let's take a conservative outlook on Ishbia's net worth with growth at 4% annually for 3 years, he would be north of $6 billion when Reinsdork walks away.

 

 

 

Ishbia decided to purchase a large block of stock in the White Sox, after he initially wanted to do that with the Minnesota Twins. An objective business person might conclude that Ishbia was seeking the best investment he could make in a sports franchise.  Seems logical. Others might conclude otherwise.

Some seem to suggest that, once Ishbia gains a controlling interest in the White Sox, that he will use his personal wealth to personally guaranty player contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars, or in the alternative, manipulate/increase corporate debt,  as private equity investors often do,  in order to cover things like large player contracts. That is possible. Anything is possible. 

As a fan of the White Sox, I want to see the team win now. I don't care to wait for 2030 and beyond, or to imagine what the landscape of major league baseball might be at that time. 

Edited January 28Jan 28 by tray

3 minutes ago, tray said:

Ishbia decided to purchase a large block of stock in the White Sox, after he initially wanted to do that with the Minnesota Twins. An objective business person might conclude that Ishbia was seeking the best investment he could make in a sports franchise.  Seems logical. Others might conclude otherwise.

Some seem to suggest that, once Ishbia gains a controlling interest in the White Sox, that he will use hundreds of millions of dollars of his personal wealth to personally guaranty player contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars, or in the alternative, manipulate/increase corporate debt,  as private equity investors often do,  in order to cover things like large player contracts. That is possible. Anything is possible. 

As a fan of the White Sox, I want to see the team win now. I don't care to wait for 2030 and beyond, or to imagine what the landscape of major league baseball might be at that time. 

The alternative is that Jerry lives forever and continues on with a payroll at the bottom of the entire MLB.  Yeah, I’ll take the unknown.

30 minutes ago, tray said:

Ishbia decided to purchase a large block of stock in the White Sox, after he initially wanted to do that with the Minnesota Twins. An objective business person might conclude that Ishbia was seeking the best investment he could make in a sports franchise.  Seems logical. Others might conclude otherwise.

Some seem to suggest that, once Ishbia gains a controlling interest in the White Sox, that he will use his personal wealth to personally guaranty player contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars, or in the alternative, manipulate/increase corporate debt,  as private equity investors often do,  in order to cover things like large player contracts. That is possible. Anything is possible. 

As a fan of the White Sox, I want to see the team win now. I don't care to wait for 2030 and beyond, or to imagine what the landscape of major league baseball might be at that time. 

Congratulations, you just described the last 5 years under Jerry... and we still didn't spend.

1 hour ago, southsider2k5 said:

Even their biggest contract of the winter (a massive 40 billion, no wait, million) almost didn't happen until the front office went into Jerry’s office and begged him into signing a deal somewhere around 15 to 20% of initial expectations.

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." 

2 minutes 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." 

Be easy on your button, you don't want to chafe.

13 hours ago, Kyyle23 said:

I miss being that guy too.  I wish this organization didn’t revert to whatever this is, but it’s been an unpleasant stretch for sure 

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. 

6 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. 

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. 

 

 

8 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 think MIssouri needs to make a pitch for the White Sox, because you need to Show Me.