SoxBlanco

I suggested Kopech, Madrigal, and Heuer yesterday, and you said Cincinnati would probably be asking for Kopech and Vaughn.

You’re absolutely right. There is no clear and obvious choice. That’s why the best route might be to make a trade that doesn’t involve Vaughn, Kopech, or Crochet. Heuer, Madrigal, Kelley, Stiever, and Thompson seem like the likely names if a trade is made. Try to get the best value using some combination of those five players.

Any chance of signing him if his market is nonexistent and we can work out a one or two year deal? I’m guessing the answer is still no.

Kopech, Thompson, and Kelley for Castillo Is that enough? Too much?

Wasn’t that just a settlement to avoid arbitration?

Give Richards $7M, with an extra $3M as an innings incentive. If he’s pitching well, you gladly pay the extra $3M. If he’s struggling or injured, Kopech takes his place in the rotation in June. If Richards can find a $10M guaranteed offer with another team, let him take it and go after another target. With all the different trade talks that have been rumored, I don’t think we are going to spend a penny more than what we feel somebody is worth. If we can’t land somebody on our terms, then we try to make a trade a month from now (or sooner if the right deal comes along).

I think you’re mixing up the two different discussions that were happening. Jorge has an unofficial agreement with the Rockies. Colas doesn’t have an agreement, as far as we know.

Can we keep Vaughn and give up Kopech, Madrigal, and Heuer instead?

Agreed. Some people think good coaches can fix anything. Similar to when an offense sucks and it’s automatically the hitting coach’s fault. Sometimes players just aren’t good enough, regardless of how they are coached.

I want to circle back to Musgrove for a minute. With only two years of control, what will it take to land him? He had to be the cheapest of the potential trade targets, right? Here’s a somewhat recent article on him. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.mlb.com/amp/news/joe-musgrove-trade-candidate-analysis.html

Who do you dislike more? Grandal or Madrigal?

I don’t think so. They seem to be hinting that Richards is more likely.

Hey Liam, if you're reading this, you're lucky that Abreu hit that ball right at the second baseman in game 2. Also, nice job shutting us down in game 3 after throwing about 327 pitches in game 2. Glad to have you on board. Looking forward to the season.

It would make for a pretty good pool to guess the opening day DH right now. There are so many variables, like whether we will sign somebody or whether we will work out an extension with Vaughn. Even the opposing pitcher for opening day would be an important variable. If you guys had to predict a name right now on January 15, who would you guess?

Oh, I totally agree. I guess I was just saying it would have been better to say "like the Sox will ever get close to $200M" instead of "like the Sox will ever have to pay the luxury tax". I realize those are basically the same thing, but I'm just pointing it out for the sake of the point he was trying to make,

That’s kind of his point, though, if what he’s saying is correct. If there’s no chance the Sox will ever pay the luxury tax, it’s good to know the payroll can actually be higher than $210M without having to pay it.

I’m with you. I think he’s a perfect fit for our situation right now. High ceiling, but if he sucks/gets injured, hopefully Kopech is ready to take his spot in the rotation.

It’s an interesting proposal, but I think I agree with @Y2Jimmy0 that the Brewers say no. Burnes is such a unique trade target. His potential is through the roof, which means the Brewers would probably want Kopech or Vaughn. But it’s tough for us to give up our best prospects for a guy who is still unproven in a way.

It's not just about Kopech vs. Kluber. If Cease is struggling, then Kopech can replace him. If somebody gets hurt, Kopech can be a replacement. If Kopech has to stay down all year because all five of our starters stay healthy and pitch well, then we'll be in the best team in the AL, and it won't even be close.

If he’s pitching well, then he won’t lose playing time. If he’s not pitching well, then he wouldn’t be getting a big contract anyway.

Huh? Perhaps you are directing that question at somebody else. I don't think we should be acquiring Benintendi because there isn't a place for him to play. If we do happen to grab an outfielder that pushes Eloy to DH, then Vaughn will be staying in the minors, but I don't see that happening. My main point was that they will only be calling Vaughn up if there is a chance for him to play every day...not to just get spot starts.

People are upset about Madrigal because they want there to be a higher ceiling associated with the 4th overall pick in the draft. However, I'm with you on this discussion. They took a guy who was almost guaranteed to be a major leaguer, and I am completely fine with that. I also have no doubt that Madrigal will improve his defense and base running. He'll never have elite speed, but I can't believe people are worried about his base running. Good base running requires good instincts and a high baseball IQ. It's tough to teach those things, and I have no doubt Nick has them, not just because of a scouting report, but because of things I have already seen him do (for example, tagging up from first on a fly ball to CF when the center fielder is catching it on his heels). Good base running also requires being aggressive at times, and because of that, you are going to get thrown out every once in a while. Things you could get away with in high school and maybe even college aren't going to fly in the major leagues, and he will learn that. It's absolutely crazy to be worried about his baserunning at this point in time. As for his defense, he got eaten up by the lip a couple times. Once again, he will learn. He's not an idiot. I'd be more worried if he were booting routine grounders.

I agree that the situation could work itself out, but once Vaughn is up, he's going to be playing every day. He won't get called up to just get spot starts.

That’s my exact thought as well.

You know who else is red for 11 of 13 categories? Musgrove. And he won't cost nearly what those other guys would cost in a trade.