ChiSoxTrojan

They DFA'ed all the oraganizational middle infield depth with Leury and Alberto.

They probably didn't want to waste a 40 man spot on someone like Sanchez or Erik Gonzalez for what will likely be a short stint, especially after adding Remillard a couple days ago.

If his back went out just from flying, it was a ticking time bomb and would likely have gotten screwed up by now regardless.

It sure seems like they are timing Moncada's IL stint with the return of Eloy.

Agreed. It should more of a rotation, where one of Vaughn, Eloy, Sheets, Moncada, Benintendi, or Burger gets the day off every day. Instead it seems like it's just Burger (occasionally Sheets) getting the short end of the stick every time. None of those other guys have done anything this season to warrant being lineup locks over Burger.

Burger will likely play tonight. He's played in every game since 5/15.

As for the topic of this thread (Burger at 2B), I'm in the camp of preferring Burger at 3B and Moncada at 2B. I think having two competent defenders at 2B and 3B is better than having gold glove caliber defense at one position and a complete black hole at the other. This is under the assumption that Burger would make a really, really bad 2B. He has surprising speed, I just don't see the athleticism that's required for 2B . Of course the Sox coaches are in a better position to judge his ability at the position, but I don't exactly trust them to make the decision that's best for the team over secondary concerns like worrying about hurting Moncada's feelings.

Odor has a career .725 OPS against RHP. Not great, but it's better than Andrus's career .684 mark. With Alberto already signed, and other RH 2B options like Romy/Sosa also in consideration for a roster spot, they really just needed someone to hit against RHP. Odor wouldn't have been a flashy signing, but probably would have given them better overall performance at the position. He was the best LH infielder available towards the end of the offseason. I think Hahn was trying to trade for a LH second baseman, which is why the Andrus signing was so late, but as usual he wasn't able to get a deal done. So he bet that Andrus's small sample size from last year outweighed the rest of his mediocre career, which is a bet that he is currently losing.

If your team is routinely finishing with one of the top records in baseball during the regular season, it's hard to see what more the front office could have done. Especially for a team like the Rays that has their own payroll limitations. That front office has worked miracles the past decade.

It's not the job of the GM to win championships, that's on the players and coaches. It's the job of the GM to put their team in position to win a championship. The Dodgers and Rays have been up there for most of the past decade.

Remind me, how many World Series do they have between the two of them?

I just have to point out again that you are discounting Moncada because "he gets injured constantly", but you're ignoring the fact that Burger has never had a healthier season than Moncada. Except when you used incorrect numbers to describe his 2022 season. I agree that Burger has more power, but that's the only baseball skill where he has an edge. Burger becoming a better defender at a position he has played his whole career seems like wishful thinking. He could probably become a better 1B in time.

Your numbers from Burger's games played are from 2021, his only healthy year (as I mentioned). Last year was 2022. He played 51 games with the Sox and only 39 with the Knights, due to all the injury time. When he was with the Sox he played fairly regularly. I never said he was affected by COVID for 3 years, so that's on you for making stuff up. He was quite clearly affected by it in 2020, anyone who watched the Sox that year knows that is true. And yes I mentioned that 2021 he was good but not MVP level. The whole point of the original post is that Moncada's ceiling is much higher than Burger's. I don't think that's debatable.

RE: injuries, after the Achilles things Burger also lost nearly a full season with the heel issue. He was relatively healthy in 2021, but last year he had 3 separate injuries (leg, hand, and wrist). He only played in 90 games last year. Moncada on the other hand had been pretty durable until last year. And even in his injury-plagued 2022, he played in more games than Burger. (Whether he should have been playing is another story). So Burger has only had one healthy season in his career, while Moncada has only had one season of injuries. On Moncada's last 3 years, in 2020 he was clearly affected by COVID, and 2022 he was clearly affected by injuries. 2021 was the only "normal" season of the 3 and he was a pretty good player - though obviously not at MVP levels. Burger, "at his best," is a 1-tool player. He's got a ton of power, but that's really it. Terrible defense, doesn't walk, strikes out a ton. That power is really useful, especially on a team that isn't hitting many HRs, but if and when he goes through a mini power slump he's not going to be offering anything else to the team. Ride the hot bat, but by no means does it mean you trade the more well-rounded option for pennies on the dollar.

I know we've been through this before, but it would be really helpful if Moncada would consider taking some reps at 2B. I'm not talking about a full-time move, just a little cross-training to increase his versatility. Lots of "everyday players" split time between multiple positions these days. Imagine it's the 6th inning, the Sox are down by a couple runs, but they've got a couple runners on base for Sosa or Andrus (whoever's at 2B). Wouldn't it be nice if Burger was able to pinch hit, and then Moncada could slide over to 2B so the Sox don't have to use up two bench players? And then you don't need Romy or Alberto to be taking those late ABs if you're still trailing in the 8th or 9th?