GreenSox

QUOTE (raBBit @ Feb 13, 2017 -> 10:57 AM) This is a valid concern and a concern I've expressed over the winter. The Sox should be willing to eat money on Melky/Frazier/Robertson whoever to get a better prospect/package. Yes, they haven't done this in the past, but they've also have never gone on a full rebuild so who knows. I hope ownership allows Hahn to operate this way but we'll see. Eating money is a necessity to doing a legitimate rebuild. While they've never eaten salary (that I can remember) for players they traded away, they have done so recently for players they dumped for nothing. They also took on salary for a bad player last June. So it wouldn't make sense for ownership not to let Hahn eat money to get better prospects.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Feb 13, 2017 -> 12:02 AM) Are you real? You suggest keeping those players, let their contracts run out and get nothing for them? On another note, as for Robertson, his value could increase by holding onto him for a couple of months. He's likely to have a bounce back year- worth the risk unless someone offers a real intriguing prospect. They can still give Jones closing opportunities. And while closing opportunities would help Jones, there also is a risk with Jones that he simply doesnt pitch as well as his peripherals indicated he pitched last year. Hahn has a tightrope to walk- his patience is probably the correct approach with both players.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Feb 9, 2017 -> 02:12 PM) Miami is definitely better than the Sox. San Diego and Philadelphia are the only ones that are definitely worse IMO. 1. Anderson SS 2. Abreu 1B 3. Cabrera LF 4. Frazier 3B 5. Davidson DH 6. Lawrie 2B 7. Garcia RF 8. Soto C 9. Tilson CF That's a bad offense. Especially considering Cabrera, Frazier and Lawrie, and perhaps Abreu, should be on the first train out of town.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 11, 2017 -> 11:42 AM) The absolute dumbest thing the White Sox can do for their rebuild is take too little for Q. If it means holding on to him, that is the smart thing to do. It has nothing to do with front office favoritism. Yes, but you have to be flexible and have some finesse when doing so. There are a number of ways to get value. What is "too little" today becomes "market value" soon enough if the Sox hold onto him. Last July, Benintendi was "too little" and by December he was too much. And there are risks attached with any pitcher; I think hesitation until after the WBC is plausible and understandable. Q has always seemed to me to be a better winter trade candidate than July. Much of his value is in contract amount and length. These things are most important and valuable to teams as they plan out their organization and team for the next year and in the future. In July, the priorities shift to someone who can pitch well, not for 3 years, but for 4 months. Contract and length aren't as important. Q needs to be moved.

If he could frame, I'd be all for it. of course if he could frame, he probably would've received the qualifying offer and would've been signed by someone two months ago.

Makes sense..they needed some roster flexibility. It was a good time to push someone through waivers.

These are really good interviews. Thanks for conducting them/posting them. But goodness, listening to Hahn drives me up the wall. He says that rebuilding has been under major consideration for a while....and yet, just a few months before, they make the Shields trade, which is the exact opposite type of move you make in a rebuild (not to mention how they used draft). I guess it's just serious front-office disagreement on things...hopefully they are all on the same page.

Sure the Sox could win 77 games if Holland/Shields/Gonzalez each pitch to an ERA, say, of 4 or a little less, the bullpen is a little sturdier (which it actually should be), Anderson gets better offensively et al....AND if Hahn halts the tear down of the team. But tear-down should be priority 1 (and 2, 3, 4, 5....) this season. If after a couple of months, Holland/Shields/Gonzalez are pitching with ERAs below 4 and decent peripherals, Hahn should be moving these players ASAP (not to mention Frazier, Melky, Robertson, et al). Teams like the Phillies and Brewers and Braves should be improving because they have basically completed the tear-down phase of their rebuild. Their young players will be called up and they should be getting better. Until the tear-down is finished, Moncada et al shouldn't be anywhere near the major league team. Maybe Burdi, but only if the intent is to flip him. Williams and Hahn are just going to have to suppress their instincts re moving players up. Otherwise, the Sox will be in the same position in 2019 that they were in 2016. And on a side note, they need to be willing to eat salary when disposing of players, or this is not a serious effort at rebuilding.

QUOTE (fathom @ Feb 5, 2017 -> 10:04 PM) Makes me think Q stays The guy they took in Rule 5 is Q's replacement. A Q trade dependent on signing Hammel would be idiotic.

Hammer to Royals. More supply off the market. Every little bit helps.

QUOTE (Con te Giolito @ Jan 30, 2017 -> 06:18 PM) Really the whole rebuild right now hinges on Moncada. I dont like the idea of building a roster that coddles one player, but in this case its imperative that Moncada is given every chance to succeed and become an MVP type player. If he doesn't the hill becomes a lot, lot steeper for the White Sox. I didn't see any superstar Royal position players in 14-15 nor Indians in 2016. The Sox had a superstar pitcher and couldn't do a thing with him. Just get solid at every position and above average on at least half of them. The Sox won 78 games with solid at about 1/2 (or less) of the positions and above average at 3 or 4.

The Sox obviously could have had Iglesias if they had wanted him. I think Middlebrooks was the player Boston was pushing. Yes, Avi is clearly a KW type player. But whether Hahn is really any different, or that KW still doesn't have major stroke in personnel decisions, remains to be seen. I don't know if Hahn would be any better (after all, he did make the Shields trade) but he can't be any worse. It's a dead season so no reason not to throw Avi out there...there really isn't anyone more worthy of an audition at this point. His BB rate is good (especially for someone who doesn't get pitched around) and it's hard to understand why he doesn't make better contact. He could be a late bloomer, and he could improve although I suspect that that has a better chance of happening, unfortunately, with a different organization and some fresh eyes who might see something about his swing/approach. But I hope he can turn it around and no reason not to give him the chance.

Well there are a lot of free and available players who aren't getting signed so I wonder if that model as a way to maximize player value isn't obsolete. There's a cap on what a team can pay international signees so I don't see how a draft affects total dollars. And if you aren't competitive you aren't putting much money into free agents. I would think issues like roster expansion, cutting back season to 154 games and expanding playoffs would be more player friendly.

QUOTE (ptatc @ Feb 4, 2017 -> 11:28 AM) The only things the players association is concerned about, rightfully so, are things like increasing players salary, benefits and retirement. Thus, a draft of any kind decreases salary and player movement. They don't care about making teams competitive, that isn't their job. But having more teams competitive would increase player movement and player salaries. The lack of competitive teams is a reason for the current situation.

First, I think that advanced analytics has a lot to do with this. Chris Carter is both a 40 home run guy and a 1 WAR player. Teams value players differently. They also realize that they can get more value out of a cheap young player than an average veteran in many cases. I also never understood why the players association was so hell bent on no international draft. A draft would, among other things, improve the competitive balance...and with that comes less tanking/rebuilding. The reason teams need to rebuild is that many front offices are incapable of evaluating budding talent, signing it and developing it. So they have to get it pre-packaged and pre-evaluated from other orgs that know what they are doing. A draft gives the franchises with less skilled front offices a better chance.

QUOTE (steveno89 @ Feb 3, 2017 -> 04:05 PM) I'd love to get Franklin Perez from Houston I think they like him alot though Looks good. Don't always have to go for the obvious...in fact, they shouldn't. I hope Hahn is willing to leave Musgrove out if he's what's holding things up.

QUOTE (ChiSoxFanMike @ Feb 3, 2017 -> 08:01 AM) Prediction - Jose Guillermo Quintana is traded for Kyle Tucker, Francis Martes, Ramon Laureano, and the 75th pick on February 10th at EXACTLY 3:24 PM. I take it the Astros picks are tradeable?

Well if the Astros new bounty of pics helps the Sox I'm all for it. That said on a sidenote I'm not really sure how much the Astros were hurt that warranted them getting those pics. To be sure the Cards were advantaged and were rightly penalized. I don't really see why they should've gone to the Astros. Yes They were embarrassed a bit by some of the revelations like Luhnow thinking that a team would actually give him a top prospect for Lucas Harrel.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 2, 2017 -> 03:20 PM) http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/the-best-an...-team-defenses/ I hope that, among other changes, Sox make defense a priority during this makeover. I could see the defense improve pretty easily with Tilson or Peter B in centerfield and perhaps the other in right. catcher will be better defensively. We all know that Navarro was terrible defensively, yet the defense stats didn't say so. but in the end it doesn't really matter this coming year anyway except that it's important to protect the pitchers.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Dec 11, 2016 -> 07:45 AM) If Anderson can continue to play that type of defense, it's worth 2-2.5 war alone. On the list of Sox problems, he's not in the Top Ten. Depends on how you look at it. Anderson has the raw talent to be a 4 war player; Developing a team full of those types is the point of the rebuild. Squandering Anderson's potential for the sake of the "we're still in it" Williams/Hahn fantasy land of 2016 would be costly indeed. It's tougher to break habits in the majors. Let's hope he can.

Don't really see the point here; it's not like he's a player who can be dressed up and flipped. Just old habits die hard, I suspect.

How is an injury to a player not a factor in trade talks, unless there are none because of the injury; of if they aren't trying to trade him and there are no trade talks.

Indians will do some platooning. Ventura never was interested. Hopefully the Sox do it when they build the team back up. It's an efficient way to maximize value.

QUOTE (Al Lopez's Ghost @ Jan 23, 2017 -> 08:35 PM) Levine wrote tonight that their verbal disagreements got so bad last year that Eaton moved his locker. Frustratingly Levine provided no more details. Eaton's a clown...that was obvious. But he could play...and a lot better than Frazier can. I hope it's coincidence that the 2 players moved were the 2 locker room pains in the neck. Because the dispersal needs to continue - long way to go.

QUOTE (3GamesToLove @ Jan 25, 2017 -> 08:18 AM) 60-41 today. No Sox, but Fernando Tatis Jr. made it at #47. Good lord. Plus a big contract liability. Is it possible to be more incompetent?