Lillian

Do you guys agree with this assessment of Pavin Smith, in this just published article linked below? What am I missing? I don't understand why anyone wouldn't be overwhelmingly impressed with a college hitter, with his rare combination of plate discipline and power, especially from the left side. I realize that he doesn't play a premium position, but you probably know how much I value middle of the order, left handed hitters. It's a lot easier to fill holes in the lineup, with average hitters, who provide plus defense. Big offensive production is harder to come by and very costly through free agency, even if it has to come from first base, or DH. Although he's expected to go in the first round, there doesn't seem to be a consensus regarding exactly where. Would you take him, if he were available, at #11: http://www.athleticsnation.com/2017/6/2/15...kland-as-rumors

I watched the MLB "Gameday" for the last 3 innings Giolito pitched. It looked to me like the umpire was squeezing him pretty tightly on the strike zone. I saw an awful lot of pitches that were right on the lower and upper edge of the strike zone, which were called balls.

Roberto is pronounced Ro bear to. When you eliminate the last letter, it becomes Ro bear. In Spanish, "E" is always pronounced like the English long "A", as in "late". Therefore, it would never be pronounced like our "Robert". Spanish is not my native language, but I've lived in Costa Rica for 27 years, and that is my best understanding. If someone has perfect Spanish, please correct me if I'm wrong.

QUOTE (SoxAce @ May 21, 2017 -> 07:40 PM) Eh.. Borchard was never a speedster/base stealer at any point as a prospect. Borchard wasn't a base stealing threat, but I seem to remember that he did have good foot speed, much like Avi. Perhaps I'm mistaken. Wasn't he signed as a center fielder?

Of course, he is not going to keep up this pace. After all, in addition to hitting .350, he is also on pace to have 80 extra base hits, and drive in 136 runs. That would put him in an elite class, with Trout and Harper. I doubt that even the most optimistic of us would expect that. However, If he can hit around .300 with 30 doubles and 30 homers, while driving in about 100 runs, he would be an extremely valuable offensive contributor. That's my hope, and this first 1/4 of the season is certainly encouraging.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ May 21, 2017 -> 07:08 PM) Maybe I'm crazy but I'd take George Kenneth Griffey Jr. and his 5 tool talents over Avi anyday. Hawk was not quoted as having said that Avi is the best 5 too player he has ever seen. What he said was; "Avi is the best 5 tool prospect that the Sox have had", in Hawk's many years with the organization. He went on to list some of the outstanding 5 tool prospects, such as Daryl Boston, Kenny Williams and Brian Anderson. He forgot to mention Joe Borchard, but that was another one, whom I sure that he would include in that group.

The only thing that he could still improve upon is his ability to draw more bases on balls. I suspect that teams will begin to more frequently pitch around him and if he can take his walks, then his offensive game will be complete. During last nights romp in Seattle, Hawk said that Avi is the best 5 tool talent that the Sox have had, in his entire career, in the booth.

Just an interesting observation: In 2015, Charlotte had another young switch hitting second baseman. He was a year older than Moncada is now, and he didn't have his power or speed, but he did put up some very impressive numbers at AAA that year. His name was Carlos Sanchez, a.k.a. Yolmer Sanchez. Here are the comparative stats for Moncada's season to date, and below are the 2015's AAA totals, for Sanchez, who spent most of the season in Chicago: (Sorry I can't seem to format it better) G AB R H TB 2B 3B HR RBI BB IBB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS 33 135 27 45 69 4 1 6 13 17 1 42 10 2 .333 .405 .511 .916 29 131 17 45 61 10 0 2 17 4 0 28 5 2 .344 .368 .466 .833 Note Moncada's 31% strike out rate, vs. Yolmer's 21%. Maybe we shouldn't be shocked that Sanchez is enjoying success, so far with the Sox.

The 30% strike out rate doesn't concern anyone? Although he is on pace to hit 30 homers, he only has 3 doubles and 1 triple, which isn't much for a guy with his speed. I don't think that it is accurate to say that he is dominating AAA. He certainly has not done enough to suggest that he has nothing more to prove, at that level. Striking out 30% of the time, while compiling 10 extra base hits, and driving in only 11 runs, in the first 28 games, is not awe-inspiring. Considering his age, what exactly is the hurry?

Some interesting stats, from which you can drawn your own conclusions: The Sox have compiled the League's worst offensive stats: AVG .219 OBP .281 SLG .359 OPS .641 While Avi has produced the following League leading stats: AVG .440 OBP .481 SLG .680 OPS 1.161

Sorry, I didn't notice that his last start was a couple of days ago. Nevertheless, pretty impressive. Thanks

Dane Dunning with a big game. He now has 21 K and no walks, in his 2 starts, over 14 innings. He will likely be promoted very soon. It looks like A ball is no challenge for him.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about Avi is that he is hitting so much better than the rest of the team. It isn't as though they have faced terrible pitching and everyone in the lineup were crushing the ball. Look at the averages of the rest of Sox. My confidence is growing daily, that he is finally coming into his own. I'm sure that his confidence is soaring, as well. I'm rooting for him and am thrilled to see him have some success.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Apr 15, 2017 -> 08:58 PM) Davidson is striking out in nearly 50% of his at-bats. I don't get the hype around here for him whatsoever. And Avi has had plenty of stretches like this is in the past. I need to see a half season of success before I even consider him being a possible long-term solution and even then where do you play given his terrible defense? I agree, and please note that I did say "it may be wishful thinking". I also said that it was my "hope," not my expectation. Both of these guys have tremendous potential, especially Avi, and their realizing it would be a huge plus. Adding two productive bats to the lineup would make this team competitive, very quickly. At that point, it would be the pitching that would represent the biggest source of concern. How confident would you be with a rotation of Rodon, Kopech, Giolito, Lopez and either Fulmer, Hansen, or Dunning? They are all unproven. That is why I am hoping that the early success of Matt and Avi is not a total fluke, and why I would love to be able to hang on to Quintana.

It should be obvious that it is not necessary to fill every "hole" with a good offensive producer. If the Sox can establish a productive lineup with their first 6 or 7 hitters, a good defensive centerfielder would be fine.

Although it's likely just wishful thinking, my hope is that Avi and Davidson continue to perform well enough to accelerate the rebuild. If that happens, with Quintana remaining part of the rotation until 2021, the Sox could be competitive sooner than we think. I think Avi and Davidson are huge keys in that equation. Of course they aren't going to continue on their current torrid paces, but if they become key contributors going forward, with Moncada coming, the Sox wouldn't have that many holes to fill. Without a couple of established, solid starters, that accelerated rebuild would be very difficult. I love Kopech and Lopez, and am hopeful for Giolito, but counting on all of them is unrealistic.

Just to further elaborate on the issue I raised regarding Moncada's most suitable position. If he were a polished, very good second baseman, I would not have suggested that he might be better suited for a different position. However, since he does not yet appear to have established himself as a plus defender at second, it seems reasonable to consider that perhaps his tools would play better some where else. He has elite speed, which is not all that useful at second. His arm is rated very highly, but arm strength is much less important at that position, than it is at either SS or third. Given his youth, why not at least give him a chance to see how well he would play somewhere else? Perhaps the organization has already examined this issue, but we haven't heard anything to the effect.

Aren't Moncada's tools kind of wasted at 2ND base? He has a great arm and exceptional speed. Sounds more like CF would be a good position for him. This team has a few capable second basemen. Are they slating him at 2ND just because that's his personal preference?

QUOTE (miracleon35th @ Feb 18, 2017 -> 02:51 PM) Any pitcher, no matter where he is ranked, carries more risk than a position player would because of potential arm injury. That could explain why owners would be reticent to part with a premier position player prospect(s) for Q. IMO.. Imagine if Sale blows out his arm after two or three starts.. Yes, and imagine if one of these prospective teams opts to spend $100 Million on a comparable pitcher, through free agency. The fact that Q is so affordable greatly mitigates the very risk, to which you allude.

How feasible is the possibility of Fisher returning to his original position of catcher? How hard is it for a catcher to come back from a torn labrum? This quote from Hostetler, shortly after Fisher was drafted, is why I ask: "We were actually debating about where to announce him at catcher, outfielder or first base," Hostetler said. "Probably let him try a little bit of all of them, maybe even catch a little bit."

QUOTE (CWSpalehoseCWS @ Jan 15, 2017 -> 03:44 PM) No kidding. This thread should be retitled Hotel California. Why? Is it because "you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave"?

Not that I think the Sox should accept such a deal, but what would the Pirates have to offer, if they were allowed to take both their number 1 and 2 prospects off the table? Without either Glasnow or Meadows, wouldn't the starting point have to be Bell, Keller, Newman? I would guess that most of us would at least want another one, or two players. I don't think that Pittsburg has 4 or 5 good enough prospects, without either Meadows or Glasnow. What is even more frustrating is that it appears that Huntington wouldn't even go that far.

QUOTE (Con te Giolito @ Jan 10, 2017 -> 10:05 AM) Torres + Frazier is a bit much to be demanding of the Yankees and if Hahn really isn't budging off that demand I'm getting a little worried. Lots of talk about Quintana's value and what the Sox should get for him...Quintana's value is the most another team is willing to pay. Now Hahn's job to play salesman and get that highest price, but being ridiculous isn't productive. As for the waiting until Hahn's "price is met". If I have a base model Ford Focus that I'm trying to sell for $50,000 and nobody wants to buy it I cant just say "well have fun taking the BUS" and expect someone to come crawling back in a year to buy my Ford Focus (that is now a year older btw) for a giant pile of money. Time is not going to magically concoct a new market for Jose Quintana out of thin air, if anything his market shrinks as the 2017-18 FA bonanza draws nearer. There will be more competition at the deadline too, some of those impending FA's will be available as rentals. I disagree. Torres and Frazier is not unreasonable for Quintana. in fact, I would want one more, lesser piece, as well. I hope that Hahn sticks to his demands.

QUOTE (Buehrlesque @ Jan 9, 2017 -> 01:31 PM) Can we stop for a second to acknowledge this: The Yankees acquired Frazier for 2.5 years of a relief pitcher, and Torres for half a season of a relief pitcher. First of all, what an extraordinary strike of good fortune. Second, how strange that, a few months later, both seem off the table for four years of a starting pitcher!! Yes, the Indians/Cubs and Yankees were in different situations, but still. Should be able to give some better perspective on Quintana's trade value and market. Very well put, and a compelling argument.

Of course you can never have too much pitching. The issue is not that it would be problematic to have too many pitchers. The issue is that there also needs to be a core of good position players. Quintana is our trading chip to acquire a couple of those core players. While it's true that one or more of the pitchers could later be traded for hitting, why take the chance that such a deal may materialize, when they have the chance to acquire them now? The Sox should be putting together a balanced roster of young players, not simply a great pitching staff.