shakes

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Feb 19, 2014 -> 02:53 PM) So Paulino is blocking Rienzo. Who would have though that? Seriously though, they should groom Rienzo as a set up guy. Can you please keep it to one f***ing thread. You are getting all the attention you are craving over there. Some of us want to actually talk about baseball and the team the Sox have now that the spring is starting.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Feb 19, 2014 -> 11:46 AM) Rays, Yankees, Red Sox, Pirates, Dodgers, should I keep going? Don't forget Texas, Cincinnati, Toronto, Cleveland, Detroit, and on and on. You know almost all the contending teams.

QUOTE (Feeky Magee @ Feb 19, 2014 -> 09:14 AM) I'm not the most active on this forum but it seems to me that roughly 70% of it seems to be people correcting silly things Marty34 says. He's a huge troll. And not a very bright or creative one. People need to stop indulging him.

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Feb 17, 2014 -> 08:40 AM) How do you know that Marty isn't a secret Google project developed by "friends" of SoxTalk involving an android programmed to rebut the entire SoxTalk community as a means of progressing discussion & driving sales, and *I* just happen to know a crack that allows me to get inside there and use the program to my advantage? I mean really, how would you know? Even Google's biggest failures were based in more intelligent design than this project. Name me one Google project that had three bad ideas and spit them out on repeat in a thousand different iterations?

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Dec 18, 2013 -> 05:04 PM) It's difficult to argue that the Sox shouldn't be heavily involved in due diligence for Tanaka. He should be considered an option. Whether or not they choose to enter the bidding depends ENTIRELY on their internal assessment of his abilities and upside -- an assessment to which we have no insight and which may or may not be completely different from public or even internal club consensus. If they don't get him, it won't necessarily be because they didn't think they had the payroll space. Absolutely. They should be doing their due diligence. If they feel he is a can't miss ace. Get in the mix.The Sox history says they are very wary of long term pitching contracts and this Tanaka situation comes with a lot of red flags. I would be very surprised if they are serious contenders on him. Just feel like this is a trial year and the money moving forward would be better spent being spread around.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Dec 18, 2013 -> 04:51 PM) What was it? That's on you for not reading my posts. My arguments are clearly laid out as others seemed to grasp them, or it's just your normal MO of ignoring what people write if you don't have any intelligent rebuttal. Actually, it's on me for responding to you in the first place. My bad.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Dec 18, 2013 -> 02:03 PM) There are few things in MLB as valuable a top-of-the-rotation starter. The Sox have Sale and the #3 pick in the draft, signing Tanaka would give them a chance to have three top-of-the-rotation starters by 2017 for the princely sum of less than $40M. With their future payroll obligations, it's absolutely a no-brainer to competitively bid for Tanaka. That's a whole lot of hypothetical. Again, Tanaka will potentially require 7 years and $150 million. For a guy who hasn't started more than 23 games in a season and scouts are split on whether he is even a top of the rotation starter....let alone an 'Ace'. He has had declining velocity and doesn't strike out a whole lot of hitters in a far inferior league, and historically pitchers from that league have not stayed healthy or succeeded long term here. But, who cares the White Sox can eat a 7 year contract when according to some, you specifically, have far too many holes to compete right now. Brilliant. And the Sox strength is finding and developing pitchers. Why spend insane money, on a maybe with a huge amount of questions marks, when you can fill multiple holes when it is time to compete?

QUOTE (pittshoganerkoff @ Dec 18, 2013 -> 12:12 PM) I think that right there makes this entire conversation moot. I don't see the Sox even considering a contract like that. Not when there are more important holes to fill. They won't consider a contract like that nor should they. Developing pitching is their strong suit. Why bury themselves in a contract that has potential to be suffocating? If you keep financial flexibility you can make mid level upgrades through free agency or have the ability to take on contracts other teams can't afford. I would have rather been Washington and got Fister for a song this offseason, than give an unknown pitcher a 7 year contract at a bloated rate because he is 25 and they might have the money to do it. Tanaka's contract will be the riskiest of the offseason.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Dec 18, 2013 -> 10:47 AM) If a big-time player is available over the next year or two (at least) via trade, there are probably 20 teams better positioned than the Sox to acquire them due to organizational depth. If they believe in this core Tanaka is the perfect fit (if he is as advertised.) Just like Peavy or Edwin Jackson or anyone else they have traded for in the past? The only way you are right is if the Sox spend on stupid contracts and have no financial flexibility. Otherwise, your crystal ball is no better than anyone's to be in a position to know this. They have a lot more young talent throughout the organization than they have had in the past and they've pulled off the the trades they have wanted.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 18, 2013 -> 10:46 AM) I can't believe I'm actually agreeing with Marty again, but he did say who "better" to spend their money on, not spend it to spend it. If Tanaka is as good as advertised, if you could get him for $100 million, the way the cost of pitching has skyrocketed, he will be a steal. And Sale, Tanaka, Q, Johnson, perhaps a pitcher with the #3 pick is a rotation where a lot can go wrong on the offensive side, and you still will be in really good shape. It's highly unlikely you can get him for that price. Some reports are saying the bidding will go for 7 years and could top $150 million. That's as reckless as it gets to give an unknown pitcher 7 years. I know he is 25 but I don't care. He is a complete unknown and no scouts believe he is in the same league as Darvish. Let him be someone else's crazy contract and spread that money around on a couple of upgrades over the next couple of years. I would have felt safer with the Cano contract than that, if the reports are true.

QUOTE (fathom @ Dec 10, 2013 -> 02:17 PM) Last time we heard this was from KW taking about Simon Castro That has nothing to do with this trade. Eaton has a good hit tool. We need guys who can work a pitcher and can make contact. He is being bought low on partially because of an injury. I have more faith the Sox can develop another Hector. They are o for about the last 30 in developing these type of outfielders.

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Dec 10, 2013 -> 01:50 PM) So what's the consensus here, is this Eaton guy going to be a butcher in the field? Speed and arm strength apparently right? Is he inept out there? I don't want some bumblebee out there bumbling around in the field, not for Santiago anyway. His defense reminds me of Rowand. Actually, his game reminds me of a lefty Rowand. A little more speed and a little less power, with better contact skills. I actually really like this. No way at this time last year could the Sox have made this trade. That's the fickle nature of the prospect world.

He seems like he would be a great fit, but I just fear the bidding is going to get to crazy levels. The Red Sox and Rangers have needs at first base, and the Twins and O's keep hinting at going big in the international markets. The A's could jump right back in given their difficulties to attract free agents, and we haven't even touched on the NL. I feel like his contract will blow Puig's and Cespedes out of the water.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 31, 2013 -> 01:31 AM) http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-big-leag...-201614409.html PROS 1) Would give us a more recognizable name for marketing 2) Could shift DeAza to LF and Viciedo to 1B/DH 3) LH power (to supplement Dunn's failings)....short porch in RF, similar to Yankee Stadium 4) Great human interest story/local ties 5) Experienced player who knows how to win 6) Phil Rogers would go nuts writing articles about him CONS 1) If the White Sox are more than a couple of bats away from competing, it could be a waste of money and block Trayce Thompson when he's ready (although Granderson could also DH when Dunn leaves) 2) Precious resources in off-season need to be spent carefully...other areas will be important, perhaps catcher or the bullpen 3) Granderson's age 4) Inability to hit LH pitching 5) Expectations might be too high playing so close to home.... 6) Granderson's a "name"/well-known player, but not a superstar and won't draw too many fans of his own without a winning team How is this not under cons?

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Mar 12, 2013 -> 09:07 AM) One or two good drafts and they can at least make it to Viscount. Earl is probably 3-5 years away though. Auto correct is awesome.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Mar 11, 2013 -> 11:39 AM) This has to be the most comical statement I've seen on this site yet. So having 4 top 100 prospects, several which are 2-3 years away, will guarantee them favorite status in the NL Central in 2-3 years. This despite you already acknowledging they have almost no pitching in their system. How does that make any sense to you? Also, can we please stop pretending systems automatically lead to major league success. It's getting really tiring to bring this up, but look at the Royals for god's sake. They've had monster systems in the past few years and yet they haven't been able to win at all. I get the Cubs have a big financial edge over them, but money isn't going to be enough to build a consistent winner. At some point they'll need their prospects to turn into major league contributors and I'm still skeptical of these four guys who are ranked so highly because of their tools and not their production. Not to mention the consensus #1 farm system in baseball is the Cardinals, and they have a great track record of player development. That team isn't going anywhere. They are probably the model organization in baseball. The Cubs have to really improve their pitching in their minor leagues and their talent at the upper levels. Both, are practically baron. They have a long way to go. I think it will be real interesting to see how this turns out for Theo. I don't really remember a similar case, in which a team with their resources, decided to tear it all down and start from scratch. It's the perfect place to do it. The Cubs revenue won't change much even if they tank another 3 years.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Dec 3, 2012 -> 12:44 PM) Great post, been saying this to friends for years. This is why batting average and contact are underrated. They lead to more consistent run scoring, which over the course of a season are more valuable than just the sum of the individual runs. So you think run consistency would be more important than total runs? How would you define that? KC the last five years, or so, is always near the top in batting average and has been top three least amount of strikeouts, and they are in the lower third in runs. It certainly isn't translating to wins. Minnesota has been very similar the last few years, with poor results. The Sox had the least amount of K's in 2010, with the 7th best batting average, and they were 21st overall in runs. OBP has a much higher correlation with runs scored than batting average or strikeouts. SLG% is a better indicator than both, as well.

QUOTE (Cali @ Nov 21, 2012 -> 10:17 AM) Don't understand the re-hiring of Gibbons, he was already the manager the last time the Jays loaded up in the off-season and they still missed the playoffs. His Wikipedia page literally has a section entitled "Controversy with players". So that's DEFINITELY the guy you want leading a clubhouse of superstar players. To go along with his 305-305 record. That's the best AA could come up with? What's John Olerud up to? or Joe Carter? It's all the rage to hire former players from your heyday as manager... At least they're gonna underachieve in great uniforms... (but not against the Sox for whatever reason haha) This one is my favorite: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2525630

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Sep 11, 2012 -> 09:02 AM) They simply dont have enough posters to be that specific on crazy. They do however have one guy who only points to attendance whenever they lose. "We lost but SOx fans are .01% the size of a fanbase than ours" This attendance thing is getting really irritating with Detroit fans. That is all they wanted to talk about at the game last night, until Rios homered. They act like they have drawn like the Yankees for the past 30 years, when it has been for more like 4. Prior to 2007 the Tigers didn't outdraw the Sox, except for the new park opening since 1990. The clowns around us brought it up like 5 times yesterday. So I told them to take all of their money from attendance and see if they can find a few players who can catch the ball. Didn't hear another word from them after that.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Jul 31, 2012 -> 04:40 PM) Even if he ends up in the bullpen...Reed Johnson and Paul Maholm? Are you serious? There's absolutely no risk here and plenty reward to be had. I get that. That's why I said it was a good trade. In my eyes, some have gotten too excited. I wouldn't call it robbery. We are reminded around here time and time again, that the White Sox farm contributions haven't been that big of a deal because they are bullpen arms. Goldstein was adamant today that Vizcaino will be a bullpen arm, and he is coming off TJ surgery. I will hold my enthusiasm.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Jul 31, 2012 -> 03:50 PM) Of course. I'm just saying if you look at it objectively (aka, not that whatever the cubs do sucks because they're the cubs), he's doing a good job so far. Getting Vizcaino was pure robbery. It was a good trade, but I would hardly call it robbery. Vizcaino by most accounts will end up in the bullpen. IF that's the case, when did people start getting that excited about bullpen arms?

QUOTE (iamshack @ May 17, 2012 -> 10:06 PM) To whom? You? Yes. To me it is crazy. What do you expect to get for him? His best value is to stay with the team and give him a chance to realize his potential. I don't want to go the A's route and trade young players for multiple younger players. Let him develop. Doesn't matter, Kenny went out on a limb with Dayan and he isn't bailing now.

QUOTE (iamshack @ May 17, 2012 -> 09:55 PM) He needs to produce above a sub -.600 ops when he's not on a "hot streak." It's a month and a half into his first full season. Relax. Or f*** it. Just trade him, he is too inconsistant in his first 215 pro at bats. Do you realize how this sounds?

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ May 17, 2012 -> 08:33 PM) Thank you. This is a 23 year old with 210 career at-bats. What you see now is not what you'll be getting in the future. The kid is talented as f*** and will only get better with time. Agreed. His bat speed is special and his pitch recognition is improving. The inpatience around here can be laughable. He is 23 and has a ton of potential. He is the last guy to consider trading.