poppysox

100% agree!

yes

I think we have plenty of positives to take away from early play this year as relates to the rebuild. Performance of Moncada, Anderson, McCann, Abreu, Lopez, Giolito, Colome, Herrera & Banuelos have been at or above expectation. The disappointments so far are Jimenez & Rondon and I'm not overly worried about them. When Cease, Kopech, Madrigal & Robert get here this thing will pull together. Still have Adolfo, Basabe, Rutherford and others along with this years 1st rounder. Another few pitchers and we're read to go.

Hope Giolito comes back the same pitcher he was the night of his injury. He looked great that game.

I was surprised the hitter wasn't McCann instead of Rondon. Also, Eaton showed us why people have a hard time giving up on him. His defense and speed are elite.

Second guessing the manager is part of being a fan. I haven't really liked any manager since Al Lopez. The only reason I liked him was all the grownups told me he was a genius. Seriously, when the manager calls for a play that works the players get credit. When the same play doesn't work the managers an idiot. Nobody looks good when you lose.

Five tool players like Moncada, Anderson & Roberts spoil it for all the mere mortals. Guys like McCann & Madrigal are obviously good players who have natural positions. Players like Abreu & Jimenez are considered stars for their hitting both for both average and power. This last type of guy needs to find and be tutored in a position he can be adequate playing. Who wouldn't prefer the players to come from the first two groups...I know I would. I don't like the Vaughn talk for just this reason. DH can be filled rotating through the everyday players giving them a chance for a DH day once per week. Keep everybody fresh.

I agree with you that Jimenez doesn't have gracefulness as an outfielder. He can learn to be serviceable and I think he will. As long as Abreu and Alonso are on this team Jimenez will be in left field.

Good point.

Early extensions for Sale, Q, Eaton & Anderson have been a real strength on Hahn's resume. His only miss was Danks. He added a lot of extra value to the Sale, Q & Eaton deals. With Anderson & Jimenez … I hope we follow his example with Moncada, Kopeck, Robert, Cease & Madrigal to build the nucleus for numerous championship runs. Others will remind me that half a dozen others might be added to that list as the next year or so evolves. Great problem to have.

I agree! Not at all encouraging "go for it". Just observing the natural order of things is on the rise.

This would be a great day to win two and get back to .500 and start the push to the Central Division title. Been playing much better lately with improved lineup as we discover McCann is an offensive force along with Abreu, Moncada, Anderson, etc. With Robert, Cease & Madrigal available when needed … we just need to stay close to Minnesota and Cleveland for the next couple of months. The corner has been turned I think. I know this is optimistic but that's the point. Looking forward to each game instead of giving up is what I choose.

I agree with almost everything you said other than framing remark. He might not have prior years rep as a framer but I like his framing. He has a very subtle easing back into the zone. My eye test says he's save a number of strikes. It's only a month but I have really liked this guy. His hitting hasn't smelled of luck either.

I would love to bring Robert and Madrigal up as early as possible. Add a couple of additional coaches on the major league team in order to have one on one tutoring. If the big league has the organizations best coaches it makes sense our most prized resources train with them.

A good series with Minnesota and we'll be right in this thing.

Well...he can pitch really slow. Adds about an hour to the game. Maybe JR likes the concessions part of that.

We sure love having a lot of DH types. People want Collins to DH and draft Vaughn. They want Abreu & Jimenez to DH and it would be great to pickup JD Martinez. I like Abreu and have no problem with a 2 or 3 year extension at a fair rate. But if that blocks some of these other guys it doesn't make sense. If at the end of the day we need to trade Abreu I would rather do it a year early rather than a year to late. FWIW most of us were delighted when Konerko's last couple of years ended. They were painful to watch and tarnished an otherwise great career. These guys should not hang on until the fans don't remember the good times. No one should have a job for as long as they want. These are multi millionaires and they need to produce to earn these salaries. Times change.

To be fair...Yoan was with us a year before he blossomed. Maybe our coaches are better than Boston's. With so many young guys coming up...I would like Sox management to add a couple of extra coaches at the major league level. We do and will have an unusual number of talented but inexperienced players. Extra one on one coaching is cheap and might be helpful if management is encouraging faster paced promotion.

I also picked 18-12. Still think it's early to give up. Cleveland is only 2.5 behind Minnesota and we are only 2.5 behind them. I find it's more fun to believe in really good fortune. Sox have played some very encouraging games lately. IMO...we will do well if the rotation finds consistent solid performances like we've seen recently.

I thought the 1st base coach was suppose to be watching the game as well.

If Robert keeps playing as he has...Eloy & Robert may both be on the field in 6 weeks.

If he keeps it up it will be probability. Can't wait.

IMO this is a very likely occurrence. Starting rotation will improve tremendously with Cease / Kopech additions. I'm very optimistic.

As long as Jimenez, Abreu and Alonso are on this team... Eloy is the left fielder. Even long term it is best that people play a position because of interleague play. When Eloy reaches his potential we're not going to want him out of the lineup. IMO...Schwarber looked a lot worse then Jimenez when he came up. Some time people improve with time.

Ya think!