Jack Parkman

Yes, but no longer the massive audience draw that it once was due to the sheer brutality of the sport by its nature. IMO, the thing that will cause the eventual downfall of football isn't the NFL itself, but the idea that youth participation could be cut off or extremely difficult to find. Wait until school districts/major universities start getting sued. It will end right there when property taxes skyrocket to cover the legal fees and punitive damages awarded to people with severe brain injury. People, for the most part, hate having to pay taxes. When they have to choose between significant tax raises or football the choice will be easy for most. The thing that will end it isn't that people don't want to watch per se, but kids either won't want to or won't be allowed to play, whether by their parents not allowing it or public schools/state legislatures outlawing it. I love watching football, but I feel guilty every time I do so because I now know that these people are giving themselves brain damage for my entertainment. There will be a day where liability waivers will be necessary for youth football participation, if it is allowed at all, and public schools won't be allowed to offer teams.

I fucking hate when people say this. Is it too much to ask to have a similar quality of life and career prospects as our parents did? It seems so. Apparently if your entire life does not revolve around your career you're lazy. Apparently having a work-life balance is being "entitled" as well. Ask anyone who has done that the price they paid in their personal life. Not to mention debt slavery in the form of student loans. The entire economic system has turned into a predatory one. There is no give and take anymore. All give by the majority and all take by the economic elites. All of the things that literally "Made America Great" were the result of borderline socialist policies by FDR and Truman, combined with the capitalist ideas of upward mobility. Nobody wants to talk about that though. For an economy to work properly, we need a healthy balance of socialist policies and capitalist policies. Going full stop one way or the other isn't going to work. Step #1 is destroying the cartels that control all of the distribution of goods and services in the US. Regional companies were a thing because it promoted a healthier economy.

From the the Eric Longenhagen chat: I don't know what Longenhagen is seeing because despite the errors from time to time that I chalk up to being a ute (as in "the two utes" from My Cousin Vinny for those not old enough to get the reference) Moncada is awesome at 2B and it would be damn near impossible to be that much better at 2B to make it not even close. Moncada has GG potential, IMO.

Maybe not 10 years but pretty much in 25. If it still exists at that point it will be similar to boxing now.

He's been having trouble repeating it for 2+ seasons now, ever since the Washington messed with a good thing. This is the classic example of what can go wrong if you try to fix something that isn't broken. The Sox aren't at fault for that, but Giolito probably wouldn't have been available via trade otherwise.

https://670thescore.radio.com/white-sox-lucas-giolito-struggles-balance-command-focus I can only hope that they're watching video of his 2015 starts in the minors. Giolito needs to get back to that delivery.

What did I tell everybody???

I still think there's a #2/3 starter in there somewhere. Everyone compares him to Floyd. Floyd had lost considerable velocity when he was traded here(was throwing 89-91 and maxing at 93 vs 94-96 as a top prospect, similar to Giolito) and eventually after being able to finally repeat his mechanics was able to get it back. Floyd struggled during his first stint with the big club, and made great strides his second year with the Sox, even at lower velocity. I think the same will eventually happen with Giolito. We probably won't see the best of Giolito until the 2nd half of 2019 or 1st half of 2020. I'm willing to be patient, because Coop has a track record with Floyd.

http://www.spotrac.com/mlb/free-agents/2020/ Here ya go. Big names are Arenado, Sale, Goldschmidt, MadBum

I think your numbers are spot on too, and I think Machado will sign for more than that as well. If it were my money I'd be uncomfortable going over $300. I'd have no hesitation giving Harper $425 as an AL team. If I'm the Sox I'm not wasting time on Machado unless Harper says right away he's not interested. Also, if they're not getting either of them, they might as well sit out and go for another year of development with the guys we have, and try to snag Arenado in 2019-2020 offseason.

At your number, Harper. I honestly don't think that Machado is worth $350, his defense will get worse as he ages, a great deal of his WAR value comes from that and his OBP even in his best years wasn't that great. The most I'd go for Machado is the 2nd A-Rod deal: 10/$275. Anything more and I'm moving to Harper. Machado is good, but Harper is a better player AINEC.

Absolutely. I heard somewhere that he made a mechanical adjustment since Friday night. I see that it also resulted in a couple extra mph on the fastball for Fulmer. I hope that Coop can do the same for Giolito.

Some of us who recently changed our handles, have them reverted to our old handle when the board upgraded. Is it possible to change handles with the new software? Also, can you change the words"doing the things a particle can" to "doing that little shimmy" as long as I can get my handle changed to Jack Parkman again?

I don't like the use of the term "social issues" or "economic issues" because they're intertwined. They should be socioeconomic issues. You can change all of the social attitudes in the world but if it doesn't help the person become more economically empowered, it really doesn't do much to help the community you're assisting. Privilege is a thing, whether you want to admit it or not. Also, you don't have to be a racial minority or a woman in order to be oppressed and marginalized. There are plenty of white, male disabled people out there. (I'm one of them) If you're going to help out a community, you have to a) change attitudes about the negative stereotypes about the community you are attempting to assist and b) Step #1 is helping them get a job that pays a living wage. These things are intertwined, and you can't uplift a minority community properly without both helping others to understand why that group is marginalized AND economically empowering them. A lot of people who claim to "help" an economically marginalized community are actually exploiting their labor for peanuts. IT DOESN'T HELP IF THE PEOPLE IN QUESTION CAN'T BE INDEPENDENT. (or as independent as possible for disabled people) Whether that means being on government assistance or being supported by family members. Government assistance isn't a handout to lazy people who don't want to work. It is a subsidy to the economic elites that choose to exploit laborers. Instead of complaining about high taxes to the "lazy moochers" instead complain to the CEO of your company. We're paying taxes to subsidize profits. Government assistance is also used unscrupulously by the economic elites to marginalize groups of people. If you don't know how government assistance works, you get the same amount of money whether you work part time or not. So really it makes no sense to work, unless you can make enough to afford to pay your own way for everything. The economic elites set it up this way so they can point the finger at those on assistance while continuing to rake in the cash. Most people who are on assistance are on it because they are "undesirables" who nobody wants to give a job to for one lame reason or another. I believe that everyone has the right to work. What I mean by that is that they have the right to have a job that pays a living wage.......I just don't buy into the idea that there are human beings that are worthless to society.(other than murderers and sex offenders) That is one of the most dangerous tenets of Nazi ideology. Everyone can positively contribute to society in a major way. Unfortunately, American society has subscribed to the Gordon Gecko philosophy that greed is good, and most people really don't give a crap about anyone other than themselves. On to the social aspect now: Without an understanding of the disadvantages marginalized groups have to deal with, you can't help a person succeed economically. A person has to be willing to open their mind to different ideas. Until that happens, nothing will change on either front. I have a lot of personal experience with being both socially and economically marginalized. There has been a lot of progress on the social front in my personal experiences, but nada on the economic front. In my book all of the progress made on the social front means nothing without being afforded the opportunity to earn a living, hence the blending of the term to "socioeconomic". It is time to realize FDR's dream of an economic bill of rights. For reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Bill_of_Rights .

Hawkins (finally) released. Hopefully this means Eloy is ready to join Birmingham.

Last evening's game is the biggest example of the upside of Moncada. 2-3, HR, 2B, BB, SB. If we get to see that guy more and more as the season goes on, we'll all look back at this thread and laugh.

I know the Sox are loaded with RHP and OF, but damn if they don't take the best player on their board. Ideally, it would be an IF.

MiGo is toast btw. Just throwing meat out there. Is there anyone who needs a job to eat innings in his place until Kopech comes up?

Guys, everyone has been on me for my "hot takes" recently, where it seems that I'm being a "negative Nancy" about everything. I'm just frustrated that I'm not seeing improvement in the guys who need to be a part of the next Sox playoff team. I am being kinda reactionary to the data that I'm seeing to start the season. I'm not happy with what I've seen, so I'm calling out what I'm seeing. If it seems negative, that is because 2/3 of the guys who are important(Moncada and Giolito) have taken steps back since coming north for the season. Commentary about prospects or young players such as Collins are based on what I know about them right now. I will admit that I haven't seen much of Collins. Nothing says that any of them can't be good players in the future. I'm commenting on what I'm seeing right now. I know it isn't a good idea to make judgments on players at their worst moments, and it doesn't mean that I don't still believe that any of them (especially Moncada and Giolito) can't be very good players in the future. They both need a" fix" right now. I don't know whether or not it will happen. There are good signs they both will turn it around, and there are also signs they won't. We have to let it play out. I am commenting on what I'm seeing for that game. I still believe in Moncada and Giolito, among others. Nobody knows what will happen in the future. Some guys will work out, some won't. We have to wait to find out. Why is it not ok to talk about what I saw last night or during tonight's game? Serious question. We have to let everything play out and see what happens. I'm not an irrational negative lout, I'm just commenting on what's happening right now. I need to lay off posting when I'm super frustrated with the team, because it makes me look like an idiot. Sometimes all you can do is laugh at yourself. As an aside-I do think Avi sucks though.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 17, 2018 -> 03:18 PM) On a team basis, there are only 4 teams in all of baseball that have a .340 OBP or higher. How many are there if you took only the PA Of the position players with the most games played?

Don't sleep on Davenport, even at 8. He seems like a Pace guy to me. Pace seems to draft traits in the 1st round more than other GMs.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 17, 2018 -> 03:10 PM) I think it depends. At least with a walk, you aren't making an out, but all walks are not created equal, in situations and player skill levels. The giveaway is teams walk guys on purpose occassionally. I also see a .340 OBP as also a minimum level of competence. Outs=baseball currency. Use them wisely. I'd like my hitters to have at least a .350 obp if I was running a team.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Apr 17, 2018 -> 02:32 PM) Stop focusing so much on batting average. Collins had a .367 wOBA while struggling at High A last year and a .414 wOBA after a limited sampling in AA. He hit 20 bombs, struck out a lot and walked a ton. He had a 130 wRC+ while "struggling" in High A as well. I'm not going to sit here and say he's fine but his struggles have been very overblown. I understand sabes pretty well. I read fangraphs daily and get BP's newsletter. It doesn't change the fact that you can't score without a hit unless the bases are loaded. BA is not the end all be all, but unless a player has ridiculous power,.255-.260 is the minimum level of competence for a major league hitter. Just my opinion. I also think they overvalue defense in WAR calculations, mostly because the metrics are wildly inconsistent from year to year. Therefore, I find them unreliable.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Apr 17, 2018 -> 01:58 PM) Hostetler has only been in charge of the last two drafts. I think it's a tad early to make any generalizations about Burger or Collins personally. He and his staff did not draft Rodon, Anderson or Fulmer though. I don't think it's fair to say for sure that they can't scout amateur talent. There are some things that they've done in the last two drafts that I don't like but I think it's entirely too early to state anything one way or another. I thought he was in charge for Fulmer. Even so, the track record is poor. I don't think that Collins has hit above .260 at any level. Actually I looked it up and his best season average wise was his draft year, which he hit .258 in Kanny. He hit .230 last year. I don't think he's a major league hitter if he can't crack .240 at A+

Avi sucks, always has and rode an extreme babip outlier to a decent season. He's a below replacement level player and always was. To think anyone is or was going to give the Sox anything other than a bag of used baseballs for him is a pipedream. Next.