R.J.

Guys if this is real this package is going to hurt.

does Trevor Bauer like rings?

Sox therapy: I hate this move and hate almost every aspect about how this offseason has been approached. It makes me think the great things they did in the few years prior to this might have been, like, a complete accident? I hate that they're so willing to piss away money, on trash players, bounce-back candidates, and washed up veterans (in this case, all of the above) but cry poor when they have chances to take actual steps to improve the team. It's clear that lowering payroll in the early years of the rebuild was not an attempt to manage finances in preparation for a championship window run, to have the money when we needed it most, per se, but rather to pocket more profit because competing was not on the table. Now that competing is on the table, and we all felt we were on the verge of something special, the curtain is drawn back and we know the ceiling/limitations from the most powerful man in the building are no higher than they would be at any other point in history, and that all narratives to the contrary were always pure and utter fantasy. Adam Eaton. Given all avenues available we went with Adam Eaton.

One year of this guy. One year. So that means we're going for broke right!? Oh, heavens, no. Get ready for a few more stopgaps.

The White Sox way. Don't write the check. Trade an asset with 6 years of value away.

Dunning plus another prospect, per Passan. Ouch.

Dunning and a prospect.

Ugh.

For Dane Dunning.

Cool, so pack up your pipe dreams of Springer or Bauer. Learn to love the lesser product. Do less with more. Stiff upper lip. "Chicago tough" and all that BS. One thing is clear, you people that think this fossil will ever spend his money at levels beyond what we've already seen are *nuts.* Rich people like having money, not spending money. He'll die a very happy man with or without another ring.

- From early on in the rebuild, a message was sent that, while payrolls were being kept low, when the team was ready to compete, that the dollars would be there to add premium talent that would push the solid young core over the edge to perennial World Series contenders. The team struck out on Manny Machado, Zach Wheeler, and apparently never even gave Anthony Rendon or Bryce Harper a run. With the team knocking on the door of a championship window, and with RF a gaping hole in the lineup, this is the perfect use of that free agent money we've been told would be there when we needed it. - There's *no one* in our minor league system that we can reasonably count on to be a staring Right Fielder for the next 2-3 years. Any name you'd argue in favor of would be a huge disappointment for a team that is "going for it." - He'll command a 5 year contract that fits with our window. - He's expensive, but at ~$120M he's as worth it as paying for a big free agent gets. Even though 31 is older than you'd like for a free agent, that's why you're getting him at that price and not having to go to 7 years or something crazy. - The contract he'll command seems like the next logical step for a franchise that has been, let's say "careful" with free agent dollars. It should be close to what Wheeler was offered last year. Look, I'd love Trevor Bauer on this team but if he's going over $200M and over 5 years that's not how the White Sox spend their money. - His game is perfect for literally any lineup, but replacing our RF situation with Springer replaces the biggest offensive weakness with an MVP candidate. Here's where he's rank on our team based on his 202 stats: Runs: 3rd Hits: 4th RBI: 3rd HR: 2nd Walks: 3rd AVG: 4th OBP: 2nd SLG: 3rd OPS+: 3rd - Please, please do not say anything about him being a right handed hitter. Look at how he does against RHP. I don't think we're going to get him, because I don't really see us as a team capable of handing out a big check, but this is a better fit than any other free agent hitter that's been on the market. Plug and play. No one moves positions. Nontender Mazara, Leury is a super UTIL player (and a great one) and Engel is the best 4th OF/defensive replacement in the AL (maybe, I'm not doing research on that). All for around $100M? We've got that money, and it's better than paying for half measures like Pederson or a lesser option like JBJ. Those are consolation prizes, Springer is the big ticket.

Springer is such a perfect fit for this team, but he'll command a 5 year deal and if he takes the highest offer on the table it won't be from the White Sox.

Certainly sir, per your request, I see them signing Joc Pederson on a one year pillow contract with a team option and J.A. Happ on an incentive laden deal, after missing out on several other better, more exciting names for various reasons both monetary and not. And to me, that'd be a damn shame.

Philosophical musings aside, the bottom line is that if the man our team hired to be it's manager has a long standing reputation of disagreeing with many people of color on the issues most important to them, then this hire is bad for your team culture, off-putting to many fans, a detriment to your free agency dealings, and bad for your business. Yeah free agents will sign for the most money in a lot of cases, but oh by the way, outbidding the rest of the league isn't how this team has operated. Maybe things will be fine but don't ignore that you could have helped this team be in a better position in so many ways by not hiring this guy.