Vance Law

QUOTE (PeavyTime @ Jan 26, 2010 -> 05:59 PM) YESSSSSSSSSS! The Twins just got worse! You are not good at understanding baseball.

QUOTE (Ranger @ Jan 24, 2010 -> 09:40 PM) Actually, the Sox are really only in this position because Thome doesn't have a job yet. um.....and more importantly, because the Sox don't yet have anybody acceptable for their DH spot. If they had already signed Vlad Guerrero, or Matsui, or Nick Johnson, or Delgado, or LaRoche, or Damon, or Huff, or heck, even Giles, people wouldn't be wondering about Thome. But they still might be discussing whether or not any of those other players (price tag included) were a better option than Thome.

QUOTE (Ranger @ Jan 24, 2010 -> 03:54 PM) I'm somewhat confused by this, as well. During the season, almost every bit of feedback I'd get on Thome was that fans were sick of his HR-or-nothing game and that they needed to trade/release/bench him. And now that he may not be coming back, people think the Sox need to sign him? He was the most productive hitter on the team last year. Better than Konerko, Dye, Quentin, Beckham or anyone. He's been the most productive hitter on the team over the course of the last 4 years. The idea of a rotating DH is not inherently bad or good. Rotating with who? Pujols, Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez, Hanley Ramirez? That would be great. Any configuration that would intend to give a starter's number of at bats to a combination of Mark Kotsay and Andruw Jones is not remotely acceptable. Anyone who would complain about Thome being "all-or-nothing" but would welcome giving at bats to Andruw Jones simply doesn't know what they are talking about. Wouldn't you agree? The notion that we need to add another position player to add more flexibility is laughable. Rios Quentin Pierre Jones Teahen Kotsay There's 6 guys who can play in the outfield. 3 of whom can play center. Andruw Jones as our 3rd best (maybe 2nd best) defensive centerfielder is probably better than Erstad, our 2007 starter. See also, Griffey, Mackowiak, Podsednik in recent years. Ramirez Beckham Vizquel There's 3 that can play shortstop. They and Teahen can play 2nd base. The notion that we need to have a roster spot for "person to be inserted into a game when we are getting killed, but Ozzie can't put in bench players Omar Vizquel and Andruw Jones because that would be disrespectful to players who used to be great but no longer are and Ozzie got his feelings hurt when that happened to him at the end of his career," is disrespectful to the fans, who pay all of these people's salaries. Kotsay and Jones playing most every game when the far superior Thome is available for a small price is simply indefensible. And again, I fully believe Kenny is smarter than this. So I won't actually believe the above, s***ty scenario, until I actually see it.

QUOTE (PeavyTime @ Jan 22, 2010 -> 01:49 PM) Home runs don't win championships, but hey that's just my opinion. World Series Winner 2009 Yankees 244 home runs 2008 Phillies 214 2007 Red Sox 166 2006 Cardinals 184 2005 White Sox 200 2004 Red Sox 222

QUOTE (fathom @ Jan 22, 2010 -> 12:47 PM) I look forward to seeing Thome swing and miss at every high fastball that is thrown to him by Thornton Do you also look forward to Andruw Jones swing and miss at every baseball that is thrown to him by everyone?

QUOTE (ptatc @ Jan 22, 2010 -> 07:51 AM) This is one of the best lines ever. It's amazing how a guy can have a successful career as both a player and a manager yet not understand the game. I want to go gambling with Ozzie because he must be the luckiest guy in the world to have his career and not understand the game. Ozzie was a dynamite defensive shortstop as a player and a great rah-rah guy and teammate. His career OBP was .287. I say, his career OBP was .287. But he played during an era where having a shortstop who is a complete offensive liability was much more common. It seems that he fails to put into perspective the relative importance of "guy who is good at not making outs" and "guy who can bunt, slap a single, and run pretty well" (a player like himself). The game, and the team do not exist so that Ozzie can make a lot of substitutions and call for bunts and make himself feel like he's really managing the hell out of the game. If he actually thinks that having Brent Lillibridge on this team so that he can pinch run is more important than giving 400-500 PAs to a guy (like Thome) who is great at the 2 most important things on offense- not making outs, and hitting the ball really far- then he doesn't understand baseball. He should be forced to take classes. If all of this is intentional obfuscation on the part of Kenny and Ozzie, then I say huzzah, and I await the arrival of a legitimate hitter. Like I said, if Jones or Kotsay is actually starting in every game that's when I'll blame Williams.

I will believe it when I see it. I consider Kenny to be a very smart guy and GM who understands baseball. I simply will not believe that he would pass up the opportunity to upgrade the offense so cheaply and easily until I see it. Rotating DH? What in the flying f*** does that mean? As the team is currently constructed, it means giving Jones and Kotsay, what 700 plate appearances this year? I won't believe that Kenny is that dumb until I actually see it happen. It doesn't matter what Ozzie says. Kenny knows that Ozzie is a person who doesn't fully understand the game of baseball, and is not the person in charge of hiring and firing players on the team. A "rotating DH" as Ozzie would describe, simply means giving those 2 clowns tons of at bats, and Kenny knows that is preposterous. Why would you give Mark Kotsay 400 at bats at DH, or in the field and send someone else to DH, when you could instead add Jim Thome? Despite the fact that Ozzie is the manager, there is still a thing called logic, and Kenny understands that. If you have the option of "resting" a player by having them DH for a game, and having Jones or Kotsay in the field and batting, or instead resting a player by putting them on the bench while Jones or Kotsay plays and Thome is DH, well, an intelligent person understands the difference, and I know that KW does. Thome has been the best hitter on the team over the span of the 4 years he's been here. Better than Konerko, better than Dye. He was the best hitter on the team again last year. Kotsay and Jones are defensive replacements, spot starters, pinch hitters, and there in case someone gets hurt.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Jan 16, 2010 -> 12:29 PM) I'm seriously pissed we couldn't have outbid Texas on a one year contract for Vlad. I just don't understand why we couldn't overpay for a one year deal. Because we need, and will get, a left handed power bat. Vlad's OPS over the last 4 years .901 Thome's (excludes time w/Dodgers) .933

All of this Kotsay/Andruw Jones talk. People, please! Think about what you are saying. Even if you like to complain about Kenny Williams because you are a person who like to complain about things and/or you don't fully understand baseball, you've got to give him the benefit of the doubt about being a smart person who at least kinda sorta knows what he is doing. He knows he has an opening at DH. He can sign absolutely any baseball player and fit him into the scheme. Sign another outfielder and you can have outfielders rotate around, dh, and still start every game. He can pick up any player and all he has to care about is their offense. And you think he came to the conclusion that his best bet is to sign Mark Kotsay and Andruw Jones to share a full season of at bats? Sign Andruw Jones- an increasingly brutal hitter who still has some power- immediately assure Sox fans that he is merely a 4th outfielder only to have him platoon at dh? Sign Mark Kotsay when for a little money more he could get the far superior Aubrey Huff to do the exact same thing and be a legit full-time dh? And please, tell me, where you think Thome is going to sign?

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ Jan 12, 2010 -> 11:05 PM) Just a reminder: The 1 year in this decade where we didn't focus on power we won the World Series. Although there are a million ways to chop up this statement of mine, I still give it weight. That year, when we "didn't focus on power," the team hit 200 home runs. We won the World Series because we had the best pitching in the AL in the regular season, and ungodly good pitching in the playoffs (while hitting lots of home runs and slugging .476 as a team).

QUOTE (Kenny Hates Prospects @ Jan 12, 2010 -> 09:30 PM) ^I'll also predict right now that next year Chris Getz hits for close to the same average as Pierre, gets on base at a higher rate than Pierre, and also steals with a better percentage than Pierre, basically being a better lead-off hitter than Pierre at a savings of about $7.2M over the next two years. Very good post- I agree. And we could have picked up a corner outfielder who is worthwhile offensively and still get Thome to DH.

Anybody who thinks this means Flowers is going to be traded is a crazy person. I don't know who thought he would be on the team sitting there on the bench all year. Has he proven that he's a great defensive catcher? Could he use more seasoning at the position? Has he not only played 30 games at AAA? Is AJ still here for this year? Is he the left handed power hitter that we need at DH? Everything always pointed to him playing at AAA this year. And people, please, come on. Mark Kotsay, a nice utility piece and pinch hitter, will not be the strong side of a DH platoon for us.

I thought the day he was traded, and I still think today, that Thome will be our DH. Where else is there a better fit? Where else is he going to want to go? There are exactly 14 teams where he can play. We need a left handed power bat and have an opening at DH. He's not going to the Yankees or Red Sox or Angels- the teams with the biggest checkbooks. He is 39 years old and his top priorities would sure seem to be (aside from playing because he loves playing) winning a World Series and getting 600 home runs. Is Thome the guy who would sign for 1 or 2 million more with Toronto or Kansas City and have absolutely zero chance of going to the playoffs? When waiving his no-trade from the Phillies, he would only accept going back to Cleveland, or playing in Chicago close to home. I will be quite surprised if we don't sign him.

Thome, Huff, or Delgado are superior hitters who will cost less.

This is not a tough one. Best hitter from the era without any hint of roid suspicion that most other players have.

QUOTE (jenks45monster @ Nov 7, 2009 -> 01:32 PM) Personally, I'd put Teahan in RF, leave Beckham and Alexei at 3B and SS, and see what C.J. can do at 2B. That's a pretty big offensive downgrade at 2 positions. Murton is an interesting low cost option.

What free agent options are out there? Boston just picked up Hermida. Any other trade options? We clearly don't have any outfielders coming up from AAA.

I doubt he is back. I don't think he is done as a hitter. I think he's still got solid seasons left in him. But his age, defense, terrible second half, do not come close to warranting the price of his option, especially with this economy/market for free agents. Not to mention we need left handed power. Thome has a better chance of coming back than Dye.

QUOTE (Flash Tizzle @ Jul 29, 2009 -> 03:02 AM) I'll tell you one person that should hope Anderson and Fields fail, and that's Walker. I just don't believe the idea that if a player possesses a certain amount of potential, yet has been mediocre for a majority of their big league career (as Fields/Anderson have been), they'll just miraculously begin producing on another team. If this were to somehow occur, the issue will then be they've always had the talent, yet our coaching staff couldn't get it out of either. To me, that's a huge indictment on Walker and whoever else is responsible for talking to these players. If they're succeeding outside of the White Sox, then we should look at ourselves and figure out why. Agreed. If that happened, we would be as bad as **shudder** the Phillies, who couldn't get anything out of Gavin Floyd and won the World Series last year. Or Seattle with Thornton. Or the Angels with Jenks. Or Arizona with Quentin. Or every other team in baseball.

BA would have caught that ball twice.

Uribe breaks up the perfect game by committing an error in the 8th, Rowand saves the no-hitter with a catch at the wall in the 9th.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 7, 2009 -> 07:29 PM) Frankly, that's exactly what this sounds like. Except we gave up more than Joe Borchard. Minor league stats Allen 569 games .787 OPS as a 1st baseman Borchard 712 games .823 OPS mostly as a CF/RF Is there anything that suggests that Allen would be a better hitter than Josh Fields, who can be a low-cost first baseman if that is what we need?

They're talking about where he'll play, how he'll get at bats. Ozzie said he's not positive. He may play 3B, some 2B, maybe some short. He doesn't know. Says he'll hit, at first, 7, 8, or 9.

Ozzie just said it in the post game interview.

QUOTE (kwolf68 @ May 26, 2009 -> 04:22 PM) I was excited about this trade at first, but seeing the way Clayton Richard has pitched, knowing we'd have to give up him, our top pitching prospect and two others, I am thinking maybe we are OK with this. One thing about Clayton Richard is he isn't sceered...he's a bulldog out there on the mound, just like Burls and Danks. I know he doesn't 'wow' people, but I think we need to give this kid a chance. Word out of San Diego is they liked Richard A LOT. This isn't a dig on Richard or your post, I am genuinely curious. Say Richard sticks, and Poreda makes it to the rotation next year. Has any team ever gone with 4 lefties in a starting rotation before?