2/25 Sox vs. Reds 2:05PM

[chitownsportsfan]

13 minutes ago, WestEddy said:

Yeesh. Spring Training sites are glorified AA parks. One would think these guys get regular HR "training" that tells them to just shut up about women's looks. 

I've been to Talking Stick, Camelback and Peoria Complex. Of those three Camelback is the most isolated and also the most basic. It's also one of the older training facilities in the valley now I believe.

All that said, Camelback is completely fine as a fan experience. The parking is much easier than Talking Stick for example. The brown is a little ugly but it's also the desert. 

[WestEddy]

10 minutes ago, southsider2k5 said:

People not adequately praising it.

I've been to a bunch of spring training games, and no parks have ever really stuck out and "impressed" me. Unless they've been building them different in the last 7 years, it seems odd to complain about a spring training park. They're all pretty much the same, from what I remember. 

[chitownsportsfan]

2 minutes ago, WestEddy said:

I've been to a bunch of spring training games, and no parks have ever really stuck out and "impressed" me. Unless they've been building them different in the last 7 years, it seems odd to complain about a spring training park. They're all pretty much the same, from what I remember. 

Talking Stick sorta blew me away as a facility. 

[WestEddy]

3 minutes ago, chitownsportsfan said:

I've been to Talking Stick, Camelback and Peoria Complex. Of those three Camelback is the most isolated and also the most basic. It's also one of the older training facilities in the valley now I believe.

All that said, Camelback is completely fine as a fan experience. The parking is much easier than Talking Stick for example. The brown is a little ugly but it's also the desert. 

Peoria, Surprise, Brewers, Tempe, Mesa, Sox in Tucson. I'm pretty sure I've been to Camelback. Giants in Scottsdale. Yeah, some are a little "prettier" with the team colors and such, but they're all pretty much lower deck, short upper deck lawn to me. 

[WestEddy]

4 minutes ago, chitownsportsfan said:

Talking Stick sorta blew me away as a facility. 

Where is Talking Stick? 

[chitownsportsfan]

4 minutes ago, WestEddy said:

Where is Talking Stick? 

Somewhere in the valley but it's a little like a mini camden yards. not a "lower deck lawn" type park it has an amazing concourse with a kids area field adjacent.

https://saltriverfields.com/

Last time I was there it was pretty much new iirc which is why we hit it up. Think we saw Diamondbacks Athletics or something.

Edited 4 hours ago by chitownsportsfan

[WestEddy]

42 minutes ago, Autumn Dreamin said:

I guess primarily the look? One of them compared it to a woman that he'd turn around and leave if he saw her waiting at a blind date...which is potentially more revealing about him than the ballpark.

Perhaps that was his way of saying that if he set up a blind date online, the park reminds him of Stone Phillips. 

[GreenSox]

52 minutes ago, WestEddy said:

would be cool for Cannon to make Venable's job harder. 

He's another reason that the Hicks trade was unnecessary and really quite terrible, in contrast to the early reaction that it was clever bit of arbitrage.  

[caulfield12]

Kelenic seems lost so far...granted, it's early but with all the offseason talk you start looking for some type of evidence or verification of something clicking.

Hard hit balls/ev rather than K's in key situations.

Edited 4 hours ago by caulfield12

[WestEddy]

3 minutes ago, GreenSox said:

He's another reason that the Hicks trade was unnecessary and really quite terrible, in contrast to the early reaction that it was clever bit of arbitrage.  

Well, the trade's not complete. If they put Paez through waivers and he's one of the PTBNLs, that's a nice bit of restocking of the mid-levels just for taking on money. And if Hicks is any bit of his former self, it's a win. I see Cannon with a ceiling of place-holder. He's probably got a 3 WAR season in him somewhere down the line. He's just going to be swamped by better pitchers, soon. 

[caulfield12]

7 minutes ago, GreenSox said:

He's another reason that the Hicks trade was unnecessary and really quite terrible, in contrast to the early reaction that it was clever bit of arbitrage.  

Brilliant if it was 4-5 years ago lol.

[caulfield12]

2 minutes ago, WestEddy said:

Well, the trade's not complete. If they put Paez through waivers and he's one of the PTBNLs, that's a nice bit of restocking of the mid-levels just for taking on money. And if Hicks is any bit of his former self, it's a win. I see Cannon with a ceiling of place-holder. He's probably got a 3 WAR season in him somewhere down the line. He's just going to be swamped by better pitchers, soon. 

3 war season won't be at Charlotte.

Might be -3.

Hicks isn't a win unless 1) he pitches much better or 2 they can flip him for somebody who will contribute in 2028-30.

[WestEddy]

12 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

3 war season won't be at Charlotte.

Might be -3.

Hicks isn't a win unless 1) he pitches much better or 2 they can flip him for somebody who will contribute in 2028-30.

For taking on money, they got to trade a ho-hum arm for somebody with stuff to dream on, Hicks, who had a couple nice seasons in him, and we don't even know the PTBNL pieces yet.  

[Autumn Dreamin]

6 minutes ago, WestEddy said:

For taking on money, they got to trade a ho-hum arm for somebody with stuff to dream on, Hicks, who had a couple nice seasons in him, and we don't even know the PTBNL pieces yet.  

The trade was primarily for Sandlin. Any value from Hicks or the PTBNLs is a bonus, though I do expect Hicks does well enough back in a pen role to get flipped.

[hi8is]

Kelenic is Kellin it already!

[bmags]

At first I thought we were a World Series caliber team. Then we lost one, but then we won and now we lost again.

i don’t know what to think 😕

[Autumn Dreamin]

8 minutes ago, bmags said:

At first I thought we were a World Series caliber team. Then we lost one, but then we won and now we lost again.

i don’t know what to think 😕

Still undefeated in the televised games, which bodes well for the regular season

[poppysox]

10 minutes ago, bmags said:

At first I thought we were a World Series caliber team. Then we lost one, but then we won and now we lost again.

i don’t know what to think 😕

Go with your World Series-caliber team thought.  Much more fun to dream happy thoughts.

[southsider2k5]

58 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

Kelenic seems lost so far...granted, it's early but with all the offseason talk you start looking for some type of evidence or verification of something clicking.

Hard hit balls/ev rather than K's in key situations.

That he is probably the same dude he has always been.  

[caulfield12]

8 minutes ago, southsider2k5 said:

That he is probably the same dude he has always been.  

Hays has just 66 games in RF the last three years.

Pereira has the side/oblique issue.

Really no choice but to play Baldwin.

(No, Braden skipping a key year of development isn't one of the logical answers here.)

Edited 3 hours ago by caulfield12

[Nokona]

Hays is a CF he can certainly play RF

[WhiteSox2023]

7 minutes ago, Nokona said:

Hays is a CF he can certainly play RF

Hays hasn’t played CF since the 2023 season when he played 7 games there.  The majority of his starts have been in LF in his career.  There’s a reason for that.

Just because a team throws him in CF doesn’t make him a CF.

Edited 2 hours ago by WhiteSox2023

[caulfield12]

https://www.mlb.com/player/dustin-harris-687957

Unfortunately, Dustin Harris is more of a LFer as well.

Which potentially leaves Tristan Peters to back up CF and RF depending on how long the Pereira injury lingers.