JUSTgottaBELIEVE

And you still haven’t answered this very simple question. Who will win the AL Central in 2021?

Then who is the division favorite? Put it out there so I can laugh at it 5 months from now.

I’m not ignoring them, I’m disagreeing with them. Everyone wanted to spend huge money on George Springer. How much has he helped the Blue Jays so far this season?

When is winning the division and making the playoffs irrelevant? That’s the entire goal of the regular season after all. Imo the Sox are in a better position today (even with the Robert injury) than any other ALCentral team to win the division. Do you disagree?

You didn’t answer the question

Who’s the division favorite this season? And no I haven’t said the Sox are the division favorite in more than a decade so not sure what you’re talking about.

Have you seen the rest of the division? Don’t think they have problems too?

Current betting odds (per DraftKings), odds to win AL Central in 2021: sox -155 twins +340 royals +400

If you’re expecting the Sox to spend like the Dodgers, Yankees or any of the top 5 spending teams in MLB, your expectations are way off base. Gripe about Jerry all you want but they aren’t going to run a top 5 payroll, they’re just not. So I’d suggest you realign your expectations in terms of payroll before complaining about it.

The Sox lost 2/3 of their starting outfield and are still the division favorite. What exactly did you tell us?

And my point is that just because you spend money doesn’t mean it will help the product on the field. If championships were won based on payroll, the Dodgers and Yankees would be in the World Series every season. The Sox biggest free agent signing in franchise history looks like a bust.

You said the Padres were willing to spend money unlike the Sox and implied that meant they have a far better outlook than the Sox. Was that not your point?

There won’t be another true dynasty in MLB imo. Too many playoff rounds and too much parity among playoff teams. But back to the thread title, yes, the White Sox can still be a juggernaut (great team ala recent Astros teams) in the coming years imo.

Juggernaut (a great team) does not equal dynasty. The Dodgers are a juggernaut imo but are not a dynasty with just one title over the last three decades.

Why do you have to spend like the Dodgers or Padres to put yourself in a good position? Not following you.

So the Dodgers only have one title but they are insurmountable like the MJ Bulls or recent Warriors?

The Phillies have also shown a willingness to spend money.

So your answer is no?

Do you believe the Padres have the makings of a juggernaut? They’ve accomplished even less than the White Sox.

I still remember the time when everyone in Chicago thought Javy Baez was far and away the best SS in the city.

Best based on what? Don’t tell me fangraphs...

Sox have some pretty obvious FA signing busts over the years but I don’t think there was a more obvious one to me than Grandal. Surprised so many on here loved the signing.

Honestly, he has more value than Eloy now. I think his bat will be right there with Eloy when all is said and done, and he is a better defender with more versatility than Eloy.

Why not just keep Vaughn in LF and DH Eloy with Yermin catching. Does the defense really drop off much in that scenario? Grandal has been rough behind the plate this season.

#1, #6, #2 per fangraphs today’s update