August 3, 200619 yr http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2538688 I'm wondering why we didn't block him...
August 3, 200619 yr QUOTE(CWSGuy406 @ Aug 3, 2006 -> 03:09 PM) http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2538688 I'm wondering why we didn't block him... Because Baltimore probably would have just let him go to us. And do the Red Sox have a worse record htan us right now? They might be ahead of us on the list.
August 3, 200619 yr QUOTE(WHarris1 @ Aug 3, 2006 -> 05:28 PM) 2 Javy Lopez' on one roster...chaos Even worse, you could have a battery of Javy Lopez and Javy Lopez. MLB should reject the trade for that reason alone.
August 3, 200619 yr QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Aug 3, 2006 -> 05:32 PM) Even worse, you could have a battery of Javy Lopez and Javy Lopez. MLB should reject the trade for that reason alone. I thought they sent the other Javy Lopez down.
August 3, 200619 yr QUOTE(MSHAWKS @ Aug 3, 2006 -> 05:35 PM) I thought they sent the other Javy Lopez down. They did and then they brought him back on the 28th
August 3, 200619 yr Isn't Javy Lopez batting better than Varitek was? I can't check right now because ESPN's not loading for me for some reason. I don't know how good Lopez is at calling a game, but I don't like the idea that another one of our rivals may have gotten better.
August 3, 200619 yr QUOTE(Milkman delivers @ Aug 3, 2006 -> 06:13 PM) Isn't Javy Lopez batting better than Varitek was? I can't check right now because ESPN's not loading for me for some reason. I don't know how good Lopez is at calling a game, but I don't like the idea that another one of our rivals may have gotten better. Player G AB R H 2B HR RBI TB BB SO OBP SLG AVG J Varitek 85 304 40 74 16 11 50 125 39 58 .331 .411 .243 J Lopez 76 279 30 74 15 8 31 115 18 60 .314 .412 .265 Edited August 3, 200619 yr by WHarris1
August 3, 200619 yr QUOTE(Milkman delivers @ Aug 3, 2006 -> 06:13 PM) Isn't Javy Lopez batting better than Varitek was? I can't check right now because ESPN's not loading for me for some reason. I don't know how good Lopez is at calling a game, but I don't like the idea that another one of our rivals may have gotten better. Yes, the addition of the great Javy Lopez now makes the Red Sox the team to beat.
August 4, 200619 yr Who'd have thunk it? QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Aug 3, 2006 -> 06:16 PM) Because Baltimore probably would have just let him go to us. And do the Red Sox have a worse record htan us right now? They might be ahead of us on the list. Records didn't matter, the Washington Post said that he passed through waivers. No my$tery why. One interesting part of the article -- "...the only obstacle to the deal being finalized is that the player the Red Sox are sending back to the Orioles still must pass through waivers." I'm surprised the Os are getting any player who'd need to go through waivers (= on the 40-man, right?). A good move by the Sawks. A good hitter for the position, and adequate in the field (figure about 20% cs, his cera is about the team average -- a little better in 2004 and 2006, a little worse in 2005).
August 4, 200619 yr QUOTE(Jordan4life_2006 @ Aug 3, 2006 -> 06:40 PM) Yes, the addition of the great Javy Lopez now makes the Red Sox the team to beat. Yeah, it's just as bad a move as that spiffty Abreu/Lidle deal for the Yankees. That didn't make them better at all, either.
August 4, 200619 yr QUOTE(Milkman delivers @ Aug 4, 2006 -> 10:27 AM) Yeah, it's just as bad a move as that spiffty Abreu/Lidle deal for the Yankees. That didn't make them better at all, either. Your comparing a washed up, off the juice catcher to Abreu and Lidle?? That's pretty silly, and although Abreu will help them, in the long run the Yankees will see the true (bad) Cory Lidle.
August 4, 200619 yr QUOTE(whitesoxfan101 @ Aug 4, 2006 -> 11:42 AM) Your comparing a washed up, off the juice catcher to Abreu and Lidle?? That's pretty silly, and although Abreu will help them, in the long run the Yankees will see the true (bad) Cory Lidle. Javy Lopez has a better average than Varitek this year. Going into the Red Sox lineup will probably only help his stats. I'm not comparing Abreu/Lidle with Lopez, but thanks for putting those words into my mouth. My point is that two of our main opponents may have just gotten better.
August 4, 200619 yr QUOTE(jackie hayes @ Aug 4, 2006 -> 01:44 AM) A good move by the Sawks. A good hitter for the position, and adequate in the field (figure about 20% cs, his cera is about the team average -- a little better in 2004 and 2006, a little worse in 2005). Well, he doesnt really catch that much anymore, he was a DH,1B for awhile. If they plan on starting him every day at C, I would expect an injury.
August 4, 200619 yr QUOTE(Milkman delivers @ Aug 4, 2006 -> 11:45 AM) Javy Lopez has a better average than Varitek this year. Going into the Red Sox lineup will probably only help his stats. I'm not comparing Abreu/Lidle with Lopez, but thanks for putting those words into my mouth. My point is that two of our main opponents may have just gotten better. Lopez couldn't hold Varitek's jock. Varitek is having a terrible year, and still has more homers, RBI's, and a better OBP than Lopez. He's also a lefty of course and a better defender, so I'm not sure how much this move helps Boston, if at all.
August 4, 200619 yr I am waiting for the minister of red sawx propaganda to tell us how this move was proof that Theo is a genius and then this is one of those moves that puts them over the top for the WS.
August 4, 200619 yr Javy Lopez is a need trade. This isn't a Varitek vs. Lopez argument, it's a Lopez vs. Mirabelli/minor league catcher argument. Lopez is better than Mirabelli. I don't know who the Sawx have in the minors, but they don't have Shoppach anymore. the issue they are going to have is if Varitek comes back this year...are they going to carry three catchers? Mirabelli is Wakefields personal catcher and Varitek is better overall than Lopez and they already have one of the best DHs in the league so... Where Will Javy Play?
August 4, 200619 yr QUOTE(whitesoxfan101 @ Aug 4, 2006 -> 11:47 AM) Lopez couldn't hold Varitek's jock. Varitek is having a terrible year, and still has more homers, RBI's, and a better OBP than Lopez. He's also a lefty of course and a better defender, so I'm not sure how much this move helps Boston, if at all. Well, Varitek is a switch hitter, not a lefty. I'd also be willing to bet that Lopez's stats will go up because he'll be in a better lineup with more protection. Lopez will also be going to a park where he can smash doubles off the moster, which is what Varitek was able to do. And being a switch hitter, he could also use that short line down in RF (Varitek, this). I can't see how you can say that Lopez can't hold Varitek's jock this year. This move defintely helps the Red Sox, but let's all just say it's a useless move. Edited August 4, 200619 yr by Milkman delivers
August 4, 200619 yr QUOTE(CanOfCorn @ Aug 4, 2006 -> 09:58 AM) Javy Lopez is a need trade. This isn't a Varitek vs. Lopez argument, it's a Lopez vs. Mirabelli/minor league catcher argument. Lopez is better than Mirabelli. I don't know who the Sawx have in the minors, but they don't have Shoppach anymore. the issue they are going to have is if Varitek comes back this year...are they going to carry three catchers? Mirabelli is Wakefields personal catcher and Varitek is better overall than Lopez and they already have one of the best DHs in the league so... Where Will Javy Play? My money says DFA/try to send him to the minors. They need him for a month or so to try to keep the Yankees from running away with that division. They have enough money where they can do things like that.
August 4, 200619 yr I liked SoxMachine's take. Another interesting name floated on the waiver wire as the Baltimore Orioles designated catcher Javier Lopez for free agency. As is being reported, the Red Sox are working with Baltimore to arrange a trade, meaning that the White Sox had the chance to put in a claim and chose not to. This may seem like another possible rival bulking up while the Sox stand pat, but I think this is an alright non-move by Kenny Williams. And I'm the guy who wrote a three-part series bemoaning the Sandy Alomar Jr. acqusition. There would've been a few positives. For one, it would've prevented the Red Sox from improving their catching position, which is currently a patchwork situation now that Jason Varitek is due to miss four to six weeks. And Lopez is a righty catcher, which makes him a natural platoon partner for A.J. Pierzynski. But while he's been a better offensive catcher than Alomar his entire career, it wouldn't have been the right fit for the White Sox for the following reasons: No. 1: Price. I'm sure Jerry Reinsdorf could've found a way to absorb the ~$3 million still owed to Lopez out of the $9 million still owed to him, since it's his last year. And since he's in the last year of the contract, that $3 million might buy a couple extra compensatory picks in next year's draft. But in order to claim those picks, they would need to offer Lopez arbitration, which would likely be around $5 million or so. Given that Lopez is a 36-year-old catchers with numbers in decline three seasons in a row, he might not pass up easy money -- even if it pales in comparison to the three-year, $22.5 million deal he signed to join the Orioles in 2004. If the Sox don't offer him arbitration, then they'll have paid a lot of money (and a minor leaguer) for a limited number of at-bats. If Lopez accepts arbitration, then the Sox have about $10 million tied up at the catcher position for next year, which is $4 million too much for the numbers they'd get. And speaking of numbers... No. 2: Performance Lopez is having his worst offensive season since 2002, when everybody in Atlanta questioned his desire. He bounced back with a record-setting power season for catchers (43 homers, up from 11 the previous season), but I'd wager he doesn't have that in him nowadays. This year, his OPS against lefties is .703 in 77 at-bats. There are sample-size issues, of course, but that stat has also been in decline with the rest of his game. And considering he might see only 80 at-bats the rest of the season if he were backing up Pierzynski, I'm not sure how big the difference would be over Alomar for the rest of the year in a back-up role. I'd say not enough to overcome his... No. 3: Attitude Lopez has had the reputation as being a bad game-caller for years, and now he's a whiner on top of that. He was upset that he wasn't moved by the deadline, because the Orioles had no use for him with the superior Ramon Hernandez getting most of the playing time. The Sox haven't been opposed to signing trouble-makers, but given the role Lopez would be playing (the same one complained about in Baltimore), he's probably not worth the time. The Sox have enough problems as it is, and I wouldn't want to add another one who has to deal with our struggling starting pitchers. Say what you will about Alomar -- and I've said plenty -- but people like being around him. It's true that Lopez's bat could come alive and he could go on a tear the rest of the season, but he's recently shown a stronger tendency to be complacent -- when he's not injured, that is. If he helps the Red Sox to a playoff spot over the White Sox, it will surely sting, but I don't think the division hinges on it. And if it did, then all that means is that the White Sox had far bigger issues.
August 4, 200619 yr The deal is finished, with some cash going to Boston along with Lopez and a PTBNL going to Baltimore. Link
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