once again, its ONE down year. He is one of the most consistently good pitchers in the entire MLB. You dont just give up on your best pitcher, your Ace, your staff leader because he had one down year. Mark has a career 3.63 ERA, find me a replacement for that type of production. Every pitcher will have a bad year or two, its called baseball.

 

I'm more concerned about how many innings he's logged. Trust me, there's no bigger Buehrle supporter than myself. However, I do have some concerns about his ability to keep his ERA under 4 for the next few years. He's going to get paid like a superstar....I just am not sure if his best years are behind him.

I would hold onto all of our pitchers now and see what ST brings and make trade decisions then. Buerhle, Garcia, Contreras, Vazquez and Garland have the talent and I an not sure trading any of them would be the right thing to do. I am not impressed with McCarthy and don't see him as being ready to take over a starting role.

 

 

too much money tied up in the rotation, as is, for a team that has other needs. and while i know pitching was a problem this year, i think McCarthy absolutely has to be in there for one of these bigger money guys. we need to free up some money to add position players.

 

and if that seems cheap, remember that before 05 we cut ties with big payday guys in order to fill multiple needs.

too much money tied up in the rotation, as is, for a team that has other needs. and while i know pitching was a problem this year, i think McCarthy absolutely has to be in there for one of these bigger money guys. we need to free up some money to add position players.

 

and if that seems cheap, remember that before 05 we cut ties with big payday guys in order to fill multiple needs.

Garcia, Contreras, Vaz, those are your 3 trading chips. I personally think that Jose would be a good trading chip because of his age. He can still dominate for a few years, but really will go downhill sooner than later. You get rid of him, you get rid of Uribe, and Pods, we now have some cash to spend.

Garcia, Contreras, Vaz, those are your 3 trading chips. I personally think that Jose would be a good trading chip because of his age. He can still dominate for a few years, but really will go downhill sooner than later. You get rid of him, you get rid of Uribe, and Pods, we now have some cash to spend.

I still think you include Buehrle on that list until you sign him to an extension. If you can't sign Buehrle, you have no choice but to trade him, because his value as a trading chip would be significantly higher than his value as a 1-more-year and gone for draft picks guy.

For those who don't remember Buerhle had similar struggles in 2003 before finally turning it around in the 2nd half of that season and went on to have a 16-10 with an era of 3.89 in 2004 and followed that up by going 16-8 with an era of 3.12 and was a HUGE reason why they won it all in 2005. His 2006 struggles are very similar to 2003. You have to pick him up. For what Zito is going to get this offseason, that $9.5 million is a bargain IMO. Keep Buerhle, he's been our most consistent pitcher over the past 6 seasons and he has proven once he can turn it around and going into his free agent offseason next year, i garuntee he has a great year.

 

IMO i would keep the rotation as is. I know there are pleanty of Freddy and Javy haters out there, but lately they have turned it around and look to have finally found it. Contreras and Garland have also been pretty consistent. Garland is only getting better as well.

The pitcher i would trade is BMac. I know Ozzie doesn't blaim him for his struggles, but i do. If he can't make the transition into the bulpen what makes you think he can revert back to a starter's role? Not to mention pitch better than Javy or Freddy?

 

If KW was smart he would package BMac with others and try to go after Crawford. Ohhh how bad this team needs a guy like him. Solid defender, with alot of speed. Get him and totally revamp our bullpen and we'll be fine.

Picking up Buerhle's option is a lock. I would also be shocked if KW traded him, but I think it probably is the best move. He's still worth a lot. Another bad year and he won't be around anyway. If I was the GM, Garcia would be gone. Vazquez or the Count would be dangled, as well as Buerhle. I read where the Sox have $99 million committed to 12 players next year. More than 1 has to go.

NAME      AGE   SALARY

Garland   27    $10M

Garcia    31    $10M

Vazquez   30    $9.5M

Buehrle   28    $9.5M

Contreras 35    $9M

McCarthy  24    $400K

 

JC, MB, FG, JG, JV = $48M, 30.2 AVG. Age

 

JC, MB, JG, JV, BM = $38.4M, 28.8 AVG. Age

 

If the Sox keep the starting 5 intact and trade McCarthy, this rotation just gets older and more expensive.

NAME      AGE   SALARY

Garland   27    $10M

Garcia    31    $10M

Vazquez   30    $9.5M

Buehrle   28    $9.5M

Contreras 35    $9M

McCarthy  24    $400K

 

JC, MB, FG, JG, JV = $48M, 30.2 AVG. Age

 

JC, MB, JG, JV, BM = $38.4M, 28.8 AVG. Age

 

If the Sox keep the starting 5 intact and trade McCarthy, this rotation just gets older and more expensive.

You should add a ± 1.5 onto each of those average ages to account for Contreras.

You should add a ± 1.5 onto each of those average ages to account for Contreras.

I originally had him down for 52 but the averages looked ridiculous and kind of depressed me so I went with the listed 35.

PICK UP THE OPTION.

 

 

this isn't even a question.

Pick it up, no question. I want Mark Buehrle pitching for us next year...its been a tough year, but I believe in that guy.

If Buerhle really wants to pitch for the Cardinals, pick up his option and trade him there. Everyone is happy then, and we get a spot for B-Mac.

If Buerhle really wants to pitch for the Cardinals, pick up his option and trade him there. Everyone is happy then, and we get a spot for B-Mac.

The Cardinals don't have enough good young talent to even land Buehrle, there's much better trade partners out there than St. Louis.

I can't believe how quickly Sox fans have turned on Buehrle.

I can't believe how quickly Sox fans have turned on Buehrle.

Being willing to listen to deals involving players a year away from Free Agency is not equal to turning on a player, at least for me.

Garcia, Contreras, Vaz, those are your 3 trading chips. I personally think that Jose would be a good trading chip because of his age. He can still dominate for a few years, but really will go downhill sooner than later. You get rid of him, you get rid of Uribe, and Pods, we now have some cash to spend.

 

I am actually beginning to think the same thing.

 

Garcia has the Ozzie connection, and you almost get the feel he is pitching himself into a rotation spot next year, not to mention that he's a pretty durable pitcher and is, at the very least, mediocre. Vazquez is KW's boy, and he's been after him for years. His 4 good months this year pretty much solidify his place in the rotation next year. Garland's obviously staying, and I don't think you can give up on Mark because of one bad year.

 

Whereas with Contreras, he's a little older, he's shown inconsistency and a little injury proneness this year, but still has retained a lot of his value from last season. Teams will look at his 2 years left and will figure they have a great #2 pitcher for 2 years at a pretty good market price.

Teams will look at his 2 years left and will figure they have a great #2 pitcher for 2 years at a pretty good market price.

He has 3 years left. The contract he signed in the offseason starts after 2006 is over.

 

And yea, I think trading Count would be an excellent choice given his age and inconsistency. He should still have a ton of value on the market too, which means the Sox could possibly fill multiple holes by dealing him.

Edited September 21, 200619 yr by Felix