MiddleCoastBias

And whatever we get for Crochet is going to set the market for what we can then get for Fedde. Settle for less than max value on Crochet likely also deflates what we can get for Fedde.

I think these reports are more for us/clicks/readers than they are for other GMs. Those GMs are actually, you know, talking to each and will say what it is necessary to actually gauge interest and worth. What a reporter says or doesn't say isn't going to impact the actual work going on behind the scenes, but it will get readers to continue clicking on their articles.

Depends, is it Tony or is it Hannah?

Wetherholt scares the bejeezus out of me. With our history of revolving door hamstring injuries, I can't for the life of me understand why we would want to potentially go through this all over again with a guy coming in with a major red flag. I'll let another organization benefit from his advanced hit tool if they can keep him healthy; I can't go through another "but his potential if he could just stay healthy!" player tenure. "What no one can tell you is whether he can stay healthy; this year’s hamstring injury was the second major one he’s suffered inside of 12 months, and it kept him off the field entirely for six weeks."

I put as much credence into that news as I do to WWBSF's letters to Reinsdorf to be the next GM.

Step 1. Kidnap Grimace Step 2. ?? Step 3. World Series Champions ?

I can see it cut both ways - contenders want those innings on their own team down the stretch, but they also want a bigger sample size to confirm he's the real deal before they commit to selling the farm for him. Look at Luis Gil's incredible start to the season vs his cratering this last month. If he was in Crochet's position (ie on a seller), teams would be glad to have seen those extra innings and adjust how much they want to give up.

I don't want to trade with SD anymore - I don't think they match up with what we need. James replies in that thread that he'd need Snelling and De Vries as a start, but I think we need to target impact outfield prospects.

4 days?

If the Phillies are serious, then they're going after Mason Miller in Oakland. Kopech doesn't move the needle much (and won't cost even a fraction of what Miller will command). Maybe they kick the tires on Miller and deem the cost too much and come back to Kopech, but I would bet on Philadelphia coughing up the necessary prospects to get a Miller trade done. My guess is that Kopech is moved after Miller and we settle for scraps from someone that missed out.

We call that the Jim Cramer Effect, shorting all of Cramer's stock advice.

I feel like your Cleveland example makes the opposite point, or at least arrives at the same point from another angle - Cleveland is successful because they can develop random jamokes into real ballplayers and we can't. We depend on high-end pedigree, basically hitters who can succeed DESPITE our efforts to develop them. Seeing Cleveland's success without a whole bunch of stars makes what the Sox have done even MORE disheartening and bleak looking forward.

I'm not suggesting everyone turns from a frog into a prince, just that the perception exists and that there is precedent for other GMs to believe in their own staffs to fix something that we can't. And this is purely focused on young, talented players that didn't pan out here. I agree with your list, not everyone turns into a stud, but it's also straying afield from my point - we either give up on young guys too early or fail to develop them properly. Ex: Chris Bassitt, Marcus Semien, Eduardo Escobar, Jake Burger (TBD). A better counterpoint would be Madrigal, he sucks out loud no matter where he is.

I disagree on this. I think other GMs have seen the success that former Sox have had with other teams once they're out of our org. They can take talented players and unlock their potential. Take Reynaldo Lopez: 4.38 ERA through 7 seasons with the Sox, 4.29 ERA in his last season with us. Every year we kept saying "maybe this is the year he figures it out!". And every year, he didn't. An actual professional organization like the Braves get their hands on him and suddenly he's put up 2.2 WAR through less than half a season, and a 1.85 ERA and 223 ERA+ WE'RE the problem, not players like Kopech. I don't think last night's game has any impact on that.

Never sitting down again, boys!

Are we eligible for a top-10 pick after next year, or how long does that anti-tanking thing last? I know we're going to pick #10 next year, but we're also not getting any next year - can we get #1 the following year? It's sad that I'm now looking forward to the draft in two years because that's the best thing we have going for us.

Game will be on MLB Network tonight, for us out of towners. We're getting top billing as the marquee game. *taps earpiece* I'm being told that the Orioles and Gunnar Henderson are getting top billing, and we're just along for the ride. https://www.getyarn.io/yarn-clip/c3abd0ae-5af4-490b-9b80-db61fdefed8a

I really want to pry Lazaro Montes from them as a supporting piece. He sounds like he could be monster. Definitely a guy to follow this summer. https://www.mlb.com/prospects/2023/mariners/

That's a worst-case scenario for this franchise.

Guy sounds like he should be a defensive back at Southern Cal. 80-grade name.

I'd like to see Portland, yeah. I do agree that it has to be West Coast, so Montreal is going to be the odd man out after Nashville presumably gets one. Salt Lake City is getting the Coyotes, so see what they can do with that before we do baseball. I'm not convinced that market is there for baseball yet.

Yep. And I think most of us here saw through their bullshit and were offended that they couldn't just talk straight with us. We know what this is. They either look incompetent for thinking it WASN'T a rebuild, or liars for trying to convince us.

"We're definitely not going to do that." Nuh unh, super seriously.