Uhh, what'd you do with Dunn

Traded him.

I still think Pence makes more sense for us, but there's some chance SF pays handsomely to keep him there. He'd be a nice, marketable face to have around here and he may be overlooked by some of the other people vying for OFers

 

 

Why? History shows Sox fans don't support anything less than playoff worthy teams.

 

Let's say Puig, Harper, Trout or Machado (one of them, of course) were on the White Sox and the record was still the same, would there be a huge bump in attendance? Knowing Chicago fans, probably not.

 

Did Beckham in 2009 bump up the attendance?

I still think Pence makes more sense for us, but there's some chance SF pays handsomely to keep him there. He'd be a nice, marketable face to have around here and he may be overlooked by some of the other people vying for OFers

Trading Rios for hopefully one decent MLB ready prospect and using the money freed up on signing Pence would be an excellent move in the mold of retooling the team with youth while still trying to compete, in my opinion. Pence and Rios are virtually almost the same player, except Pence is a couple years younger, I think. I also believe Pence has that "grinder" attitude which would surely make him a fan favorite (as long as he doesn't disappear and wind up batting .210 with no power).

 

If you could pull off an offseason with signing Pence, maybe Morneau on an incentive type deal for a couple years, and hell, even bring back AJ to split time with Phegley (assuming Phegley shows he potentially be a starting catcher for the Sox with his play for the rest of the year) while acquiring good, young talent for some of the guys that are traded off, it is not insane to think this team can compete in 2014, especially with the pitching this organization seems to develop every year.

Why? History shows Sox fans don't support anything less than playoff worthy teams.

 

Let's say Puig, Harper, Trout or Machado (one of them, of course) were on the White Sox and the record was still the same, would there be a huge bump in attendance? Knowing Chicago fans, probably not.

 

Did Beckham in 2009 bump up the attendance?

Harper or Trout would undoubtedly draw fans. Beckham was never on the same level of phenom prospect that Harper and Trout were.

Worth noting is that the Boras guy is Ellsbury's agent. Yeah, he could get $18-20 million.

And let's not forget every team gets an extra $25 million to work with this offseason. That's going to lead to serious inflation in player salaries.

I accidentally posted this in the Sale thread for some reason. Bowden's speculation: http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/the-gms-of...-id-like-to-see

 

4. The Chicago White Sox trade Alex Rios and Alexei Ramirez to the Pittsburgh Pirates for outfielder Gregory Polanco, pitcher Nick Kingham and shortstop Jordy Mercer.

 

The Pirates solve the two major weaknesses in their lineup, with Rios taking over right field and Ramirez at shortstop. Rios, 32, has proved over the years to be a solid .270 hitter capable of 20 home runs. He is solid in right field and would be a good support bat for Andrew McCutchen, Pedro Alvarez and Starling Marte.

 

A change of scenery would help the 31-year-old Ramirez, who has hit 15 home runs and driven in 70 runs four different times in his career. He’s a solid defensive shortstop, too. Neither player is a difference-maker, but both would upgrade the Pirates at those positions.

 

In Polanco the White Sox would acquire an excellent outfield prospect who profiles as a .300 hitter with the speed to steal 20 bases. Kingham is an underrated quality starting pitching prospect, and Mercer is a stopgap shortstop. Mainly, the White Sox free up dollars and get younger as they build for the future. Their farm system is one of the weakest in the game, and they can use quantity and quality.

 

I think this would be a fantastic return.

I accidentally posted this in the Sale thread for some reason. Bowden's speculation: http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/the-gms-of...-id-like-to-see

 

 

 

I think this would be a fantastic return.

 

Agreed. That farm has other interesting pieces too if Polanco isn't available. Hanson, Glasnow, Bell are a few others.

Traded him.

 

So you are essentially replacing Adam Dunn with Brian McCann. You'll almost certainly have to eat salary if you move Dunn too.

 

Let's compare ages 21 through 29 for both, shall we?

 

McCann - .280/.352/.477/.829

Dunn - .249/.383/.520/.903

 

On what planet is that a good idea?

Cubs and Mariners in a battle for Ellsbury, with the other one getting Choo

 

Then I hope the Cubs win the battle for Ellsbury.

Cubs and Mariners in a battle for Ellsbury, with the other one getting Choo

 

The Cubs will get Ellsbury.

I accidentally posted this in the Sale thread for some reason. Bowden's speculation: http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/the-gms-of...-id-like-to-see

 

 

 

I think this would be a fantastic return.

 

 

You are essentially trading two quality major leaguers for one good prospect and two fringe guys. I think there is a better deal to be had splitting the two up.

You are essentially trading two quality major leaguers for one good prospect and two fringe guys. I think there is a better deal to be had splitting the two up.

 

 

Kingham is not a fringe guy. Probably the 3rd best pitching prospect in that system. He's a good get. I'd rather have position players though. It's a moot point because neither Rios or Ramirez is netting the White Sox someone like Polanco.

Kingham is not a fringe guy. Probably the 3rd best pitching prospect in that system. He's a good get. I'd rather have position players though. It's a moot point because neither Rios or Ramirez is netting the White Sox someone like Polanco.

Funny thing is if Bowden was a GM, he wouldn't make that deal from either side.

So you are essentially replacing Adam Dunn with Brian McCann. You'll almost certainly have to eat salary if you move Dunn too.

 

Let's compare ages 21 through 29 for both, shall we?

 

McCann - .280/.352/.477/.829

Dunn - .249/.383/.520/.903

 

On what planet is that a good idea?

 

Why are Dunn's stats from 4-12 years ago relevant?

Why are Dunn's stats from 4-12 years ago relevant?

 

He was entering his age 31 season in his first year with the White Sox. McCann will be 30 next year. It was a general comparison of what we would expect out of McCann as a replacement for Dunn. There's a 99% chance it wouldn't be near the disaster that Dunn's was, but McCann has been injury prone and really isn't as good offensively as a lot of people seem to believe.

 

I just don't believe you sign McCann to get rid of Dunn. I don't believe with the emergence of Phegley that you sign McCann anyways. If Phegley runs with the job, let him start 120 games next year. Otherwise, I'm honestly perfectly fine with a Phegley/Flowers platoon next year.

So you are essentially replacing Adam Dunn with Brian McCann. You'll almost certainly have to eat salary if you move Dunn too.

 

Let's compare ages 21 through 29 for both, shall we?

 

McCann - .280/.352/.477/.829

Dunn - .249/.383/.520/.903

 

On what planet is that a good idea?

 

The alternate Earth where McCann didn't enter free agency wracked with injuries likely to drastically reduce his catching time for the rest of his career, I'm guessing.

You are essentially trading two quality major leaguers for one good prospect and two fringe guys. I think there is a better deal to be had splitting the two up.

 

Neither of them is likely to net someone of Polanco's quality alone, though. I advocate quality over quantity in this case -- especially given that Kingham would be a top ten prospect for us anyway.

The alternate Earth where McCann didn't enter free agency wracked with injuries likely to drastically reduce his catching time for the rest of his career, I'm guessing.

Forget McCann then. Just obtain a good catcher who can also hit, preferably left handed.

Forget McCann then. Just obtain a good catcher who can also hit, preferably left handed.

 

Might already have that guy in Phegley.

Might already have that guy in Phegley.

Let's see how his defense is over the next few months, and how well he handles the pitching staff. I've heard that he wasn't supposed to be too good in those areas, but let's see. If it turns out to be the case but he shows he truly can hit major league pitching, they could use him primarily as the DH.

Let's see how his defense is over the next few months, and how well he handles the pitching staff. I've heard that he wasn't supposed to be too good in those areas, but let's see. If it turns out to be the case but he shows he truly can hit major league pitching, they could use him primarily as the DH.

 

The idea of a rotating DH has actually intrigued me. It allows you to play matchups better, get guys rest while keeping guys active, keeps everyone fresh in the field, and whatever other advantages you have.

 

I do actually believe this is for real too because he was a good hitter all his life.

 

Let Phegley, Flowers, and a lefty who can catch and play other positions (someone like Ryan Doumit, but not Ryan Doumit, because he's a terrible catcher) be the primary catchers. Then you can use 2 catchers in your lineup and still have an emergency catcher on the bench.

The Cubs will get Ellsbury.

 

 

I don't think the Cubs will be in on Ellsbury for that price. They will not be going into the free agent market for big name guys yet. Maybe some starting pitching though. I have seen Almora 4 times this year and while he will take another 2-3 years to reach the majors, I wouldn't be giving Ellsbury the 5 year deal that he will be seeking.

The idea of a rotating DH has actually intrigued me. It allows you to play matchups better, get guys rest while keeping guys active, keeps everyone fresh in the field, and whatever other advantages you have.

 

I do actually believe this is for real too because he was a good hitter all his life.

 

Let Phegley, Flowers, and a lefty who can catch and play other positions (someone like Ryan Doumit, but not Ryan Doumit, because he's a terrible catcher) be the primary catchers. Then you can use 2 catchers in your lineup and still have an emergency catcher on the bench.

Of course, one problem with this setup is that it presumes Dunn can be nearly a full time 1b for the full year next year...that's iffy also.

 

That said, it'd be an interesting concept to try, although I really don't want to spend 2 roster spots on backup catchers and it seems like the managers have zero interest in using their backup catcher as a DH.

The idea of a rotating DH has actually intrigued me. It allows you to play matchups better, get guys rest while keeping guys active, keeps everyone fresh in the field, and whatever other advantages you have.

 

I do actually believe this is for real too because he was a good hitter all his life.

 

Let Phegley, Flowers, and a lefty who can catch and play other positions (someone like Ryan Doumit, but not Ryan Doumit, because he's a terrible catcher) be the primary catchers. Then you can use 2 catchers in your lineup and still have an emergency catcher on the bench.

I agree with all of this (except maybe I'd rather see someone else other than Flowers in the mix, although with three catchers a good manager could play matchups that would actually benefit Flowers). I always preferred having three catchers on the roster. It gives the manager much more flexibility as far as pinch hitting or pinch running for the catcher. I also prefer that the emergency catcher is someone who actually can play catcher, not a Pablo Ozuna or someone like that.

 

I also like the rotating DH provided that the DHes are actually good hitters, not Mark Kotsay.

The traditional DH seems to be dying and more and more AL teams are using it as a hybrid. Use it for guys to get rest while keeping their bats in the lineup, play matchups with it, and mix and match.

 

Honestly, if the Sox did a rotating DH, I would like to see McCann brought in. Let him catch 2 or 3 out of every 5 games, and DH the rest. McCann is destined for the AL because he needs to be plugged in at DH once in a while to keep him healthy and keep him productive offensively. There is no denying that when he is healthy, McCann is a very good hitter. However, he has been so beat up the past two years that his offensive production has dipped.

 

This also allows you to develop Phegley with less pressure. He will get probably at least four games a week behind the plate, and if he turns out as good offensively as we hope, he can also get some AB's at DH. Than you finish off the DH rotation with Viciedo or someone like him. A right handed power bat that can DH vs. tough lefties, and also fill in at 1B or LF.

 

I believe versatility in a team is a major tool for success, and it would be nice to see the Sox shift away from the traditional everyday same nine lineups to a living lineup that can be mixed and matched in different ways everyday to provide the best possible matchups. I believe the Rays in the AL are the best example of this.