Jake

Gonzalez got hit pretty hard a few times, but I actually thought his stuff looked better than advertised.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 25, 2016 -> 09:40 AM) Actually I have caught Stone give Benetti the silent treatment a couple of times already too. What people don't realize, because we've had Hawk nearby as a comparison, is that Steve Stone has an enormous ego. The silent treatment is Steve letting Jason off gently, because one thing Steve won't do is dare to say something he doesn't agree with. While you might think it would help the broadcast sometimes if Steve just agrees even when he thinks Jason said some minor thing that is incorrect, Steve will either go silent or correct him. Obviously, sometimes it's good to have a little disagreement, but Steve is obsessed with the being the smartest guy around. Of course, Hawk is off the handle a good portion of the time which is probably why we don't get the best of Steve with Hawk in the booth because Steve is terrified of the possibility that someone think he endorses whatever Hawk says or the way Hawk says it. That's actually what made Hawk and DJ such a nice pairing: DJ didn't have the need to be better than Hawk, he was happy to play off of him. It's also what is making Jason and Steve work together better, because again Jason Benetti doesn't need to defend his ego. QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 25, 2016 -> 10:08 AM) Very clearly, Hawk isn't the same guy anymore. I really believe his eyes are failing him, which has led to a shortfall in his ability to see a lot of plays happening. That said, his excitement and love of the game, along with this authentic portrayal of how he is feeling at any given moment are absolute gold to me. He is elated when I am elated. He is sad when I am sad. He is pissed when I am pissed. You just don't get that out of announcers anymore, except for a very few guys. It is one of the reason I absolutely love Pat Foley too. I found myself thinking "this is it?" when Abreu hit the extra inning walkoff the other day. I truly missed Hawk having a coronary on screen for a walkoff. After saying all of that, I know it is time for a change, but that doesn't mean I want to let go of Hawk. The dude is the soundtrack to a good portion of my life. I know we had a thread talking about people overreacting to the death of a celeb or music star, but I will legitimately bawl when Hawk is gone. Great post, I agree with every word.

I like Jason and can live in a world in which he takes over for Hawk full time. He's funny and does a nice job of going back and forth with Steve without completely blowing him ala Swirsky. With that said, I still want to hear WAY BACK on a deep fly and of course the standard hooting and hollering when it clears the fence and/or the Sox score runs.

QUOTE (SouthSideSale @ Apr 24, 2016 -> 06:24 PM) The only problem I've had is Jake Petricka in high leverage situations, but I know we can't use the same guys each and everyday. Or Zach Duke for that matter. I consider him the weak link until proven otherwise

Interesting point about Chicago taxes. It's also unique in that the city doesn't have an income tax. NYC, to which salaries and such have been compared, taxes incomes at 3-4% (modestly progressive), and that's on top of a state income tax that can go as high as 10% for top earners. Where I live in Ohio there is a 2.5% city income tax (and a progressive state income tax that ranges from 0-5.5%).

I look at something like FanGraphs's projections and they had our position players projected to be 6th from the bottom in WAR this year. That tells me we need something unexpected to happen in order to not be around that place (incidentally, it's right where we are so far). 2B is an area where a breakout would be reasonable and the projection has us getting nothing from the DH, but we could obviously hire some outside help for that position. I think LF and RF could be likely to exceed projections, but so far C is looking like a bummer. SS and CF I'm not so sure is going to meet their expectation either, but it's early.

I think there are some real reasons to be pessimistic about the Sox offense. It's looking like they will be a bottom 10 squad on the positional side, maybe bottom 5. We need multiple guys to exceed expectations and that just isn't happening yet.

I haven't thought that Jackson has looked amazing out there, so I don't know why people are flabbergasted that he doesn't look great in DRS. He's made at least one bona fide mistake, though that may have been after the post was made, I can't remember. Plenty of time for things to even out anyway. One thing about Eaton that has stood out for me so far is that his arm looks terrible. I don't necessarily mean in terms of strength, but it just looks incredibly unlikely that he would throw anyone out given the chance due to how inaccurate most of his throws have been. Jackson for his part has been more accurate at least in terms of the alignment, but both of them have been just chucking it straight into the ground.

I'd like to see Frazier play better, but I'm not super concerned. Even if he doesn't meet expectations, I very strongly doubt we look back at the end of the year and see Frazier's performance as the thing that held us back. Also, FWIW, I can't think of a good reason why the switch from NL to AL would be an explanation for a big shift in production.

There's something relatively reassuring when it looks like Paxson is taking charge. He at least knows how to appear competent and seems like he isn't a huge fan of pulling punches, at least when he's put on the spot.

I also think, especially at his stage in his career, missing a year of play is very costly. He seemed unusually polished in some ways, but between not getting the chance to develop further and the rustiness that comes from the time away can easily make something like his high K% skyrocket.

I don't think Saladino's MLB prospects are hopeless, but I have long felt that he's owed nothing. Sure, if you have Tim Anderson ready, you tell Jimmy Rollins to pound salt. If you have Tyler Saladino waiting in the wings, you go with the best bet, which is probably Rollins.

I don't know for certain, but I've gotten the sense that Eno may be a Sox fan. Has always paid special attention the Sox players/prospects and is generally more positive than the general consensus.

Sweet, MLB.tv says I am blacked out even though I'm in Columbus, OH which is clearly not within the blackout range of either team

Interesting how little uncertainty there was over the composition of the bullpen. Ultimately, it is exactly the same as last year, but with everyone healthy (Jones and Petricka started the year on DL last season).

Wow, that's a really valuable freebie. I've already paid some 3-figure amount for it (and am not a T-Mobile subscriber, nor do I know any especially well). As for the team-specific package, there was something about it that made me go for the Premium package instead. Was it not being able to choose your favorite team's broadcast crew? No mobile app?

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Apr 4, 2016 -> 09:05 AM) Sure it is, you arent obligated to hit every step of the minors before going to the Majors. If they think you are ready, then you come up from whatever level you are at See Quintana, Jose and Jenks, Bobby and Thomas, Frank for some examples that come to mind

I have to say that while I love Little Caesar's Crazy Bread and Italian Cheese Bread, their pizza is pure garbage, it tastes bland and not fresh at the same. If you can have pizza that is uninspired, that would be it. I'd rather have a Jack's frozen pizza. Freschetta's rising crust or whatever it's called is actually fantastic, as frozen pizzas go.

Gonzalez's lost velocity is concerning

I've only had Papa John's at hockey games in Bloomington. I always thought it was decent in the way that a frozen pizza can be pretty good. Nowadays I've been digging Domino's for the big chains and Donatos for a local one here in OH

QUOTE (raBBit @ Mar 28, 2016 -> 10:14 PM) Ironically just saw this part of the movie while I was channel scanning at the hotel the other day. Not doing the "NANANANA" but just started coughing and plugging my ears so some guys wouldn't ruin a day of exclusion on my way home. I have to say, having never lived in Chicago, I find it so unrelatable to think that just walking around town would get a Sox game spoiled for me. I have to watch out for texts from family/friends and promoted Facebook posts, but otherwise can pretty much stay in the dark until I can watch.

Davidson always was an imperfect prospect, but IMO the main reason he hasn't been the starting 3B for the past 2 years is all because he collapsed emotionally after not making the team out of ST when we traded for him. On one hand, that means he could turn it around at any point. On the other, it means he may be too mentally fragile to ever be counted on.

Where I grew up in Central IL (not far from Bloomington), Sox were definitely third fiddle to Cubs/Cards but by no means off the radar. I'd estimate 20% of my high school graduating class were Sox fans.

If you don't think the nominee should be put on the court, for whatever reason, just do the hearings and vote no.

I wonder if Chris knows that players complaining and coaches complaining and concern for precedent are not at all mutually exclusive possibilities/explanations.