Chicago White Sox

Yes, but the person who could have been protected would have ultimately been let go in late April next year when we added Hamilton to the 25 man. I really don’t think that element is a big deal.

We were going to add him by late April anyways, so I’m not sure it’s that big of a deal.

Lopez has basically been a two pitch pitcher most of the year. He's gone long stretches without using change-up at all. He's also pretty much abandoned his curveball this year, which was his best breaking ball coming up in the minors and when he first hit the show with the Nationals. Why in a rebuilding season wouldn't we have Lopez focusing on his secondary offerings regardless of the results? To me that a failure that falls on Cooper.

Giolito’s last six starts: 37.1 IP, 9.64 K/9, 2.89 BB/9, 0.96 HR/9, .55.2% GB rate, 3.86 ERA, 3.61 FIP, 3.46 xFIP 55.2% FB (93.4v), 10.0% SL, 11.9% CB, 22.9% CH Giolito’s first 15 starts: 78.2 IP, 5.72 K/9, 5.38 BB/9, 1.49 HR/9, 39.1% GB rate, 6.75 ERA, 6.17 FIP, 6.33 xFIP 60.7% FB (91.9v), 17.0% SL, 9.9% CB, 12.5% CU Improved velocity on his fastball (his four seamer is up +2 MPH vs. April). Better command of all his pitches and pitching much more in the zone with his fastball. Getting a lot more grounders by leveraging his two seamer a ton more. Getting a ton more whiffs by better commanding his curveball & using his changeup significantly more. Lucas is a completely different pitcher than the one we saw earlier this year.

I’ll give him credit for Giolito. I still think he’s handled Lopez horribly.

After the 2021 season.

This is a multiple choice poll, so please vote for all guys you think will still be in the rotation come 2021.

Ok, I thought this would be a fun exercise. We now have four highly regarded pitching prospects in our rotation. Each of them has their own questions & concerns, but all are 25 years old or younger. Could these guys make up 4/5 of rotation come 2021? Are we going to trade Rodon before then? Will Giolito and/or Lopez flame out? Does anyone doubt Kopech at this point? Will be cool to see how things shake out here. For reference, here is each prospect’s highest end of season ranking by Baseball America. Rodon - #15 prospect (2014) Giolito - #5 prospect (2015) Lopez - #31 prospect (2016) Kopech - #11 prospect (2017)

Every team does this stuff, wanting your favorite team to be the sacrificial lamb is very odd if I’m being polite.

Because Eloy hitting in the majors rather than in AAA may make this team a lot more attractive to free agents who have concerns about how’ll competitive we’ll be next year.

Jack you need to settle down here. There is zero reason to draw this conclusion. The Sox most likely want these guys to just get some rest (physical & mental in Hansen’s case) and come to spring training next year healthy / refreshed.

That .709 OPS is 16th amongst SS’s, so pretty much average. Add in plus base running and above average defense and he can be a very valuable piece. And let’s not forget he’s 25 years old and came into this league incredibly raw. He should get better.

I find it more likely Reinsdorf approves making a winning offer to Machado or Harper than Corbin. The Yankees are going to be all over him and he’s going to a get contract in length that we’ve been typically unwilling to consider for pitchers.

No, the goal of a hitter to help the team score runs. Getting on base and making less outs is a big part of that, but so is hitting for power and using plus speed to get yourself into scoring position. Also, saving a run is just as good as creating a run. Evaluating a SS based strictly on their OBP is an incredibly flawed way to look at things. His lack of patience may prevent him from ever being a star, but he is most definitely a valuable player already with plenty of room for growth. He is the lack thing on this roster we should be worried about at the moment.

If Lopez can resurrect the curve for good and command the changeup, Lopez will be a quality major league starter.

Remember when Balta said Abreu wouldn’t be a worthwhile upgrade over Bird...whoops.

Swing & miss on a fastball right there.

I wasn’t able to watch the first two innings, but I’m sure scouting reports are telling guys to key on Lopez’s fastball. That is 100% Cooper’s fault for letting Lopez rely on it thus much in a rebuilding season. The good news is Reynaldo has been able to make an adjustment in-game and successfully use his offspead to combat the Yankees approach.

With is fantastic! But the fact Lopez basically abandoned his curve all year, his bread & butter breaking ball in the minors, and has not only brought it back but has also been able to command is the most important takeaway from tonight IMO. Why Cooper had him stop using it in the first place is beyond me.

Fuck yes!!

Three pages and no one has mentioned Lopez is using his curveball finally and it actually looks pretty good. That’s a fucking revelation and greatly improves his chances of being a quality starter.

I think the Yankees blow their wad on pitching, with Corbin being a strong possibility.

Whether he can ever regain his top prospect form remains to be seen and quite frankly I’m still skeptical. Having said that, he’s clearly shown signs of sustainable improvement and to me look like he can at least be a quality #4 starter going forward. And that’s awesome given where he was just a few months ago. Hopefully he can continue take steps forward though.

Here’s my offseason prediction: Sign Manny Machado to 10/$350M deal Sign J.A. Happ to 2/$30M deal Sign Daniel Murphy to 2/$23M deal Sign Leonys Martin to 1/$9M deal 2019 Opening Day Roster: 1. Moncada, 2B 2. Machado, 3B 3. Abreu, DH 4. Jiménez, LF 5. Murphy, 1B 6. A. Garcia, RF 7. Anderson, SS 8. Narvaez, C 9. Martin, CF IF: Sanchez OF: Engel UT: L. Garcia BC: Castillo #1: Rodon #2: Kopech #3: Happ #4: Giolito #5: Lopez CL: Burdi SU: Hamilton SU: Fry MR: Jones/Vieira MR: Bummer/Frare MR: Covey LR: Stephens I’d also look to add a veteran RH reliever on a one year deal, but couldn’t come up with a name off the top of my head.

Agreed. I think it comes down to us or the Phillies. Both franchises have financial flexibility and are motivated to add a star.