Thad Bosley

QUOTE (SoCalSox @ Mar 6, 2016 -> 11:07 PM) They didn't just sign Jackson for $5M for him to be a rotational guy. He will start day 1 in CF. Make no mistake about that. Could Austin Jackson start for any other team in our division?

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Mar 4, 2016 -> 07:41 PM) Levine uses inexplicably bad grammar to hide the fact that all his articles are personal speculations disguised as reported rumors. He's actually a master of the written word, but he chooses to use his gift for evil. Tell me about it. He actually had the gall to refer to Jerry Reinsdorf in this article as an "aggressive owner who always wants to win". I mean, talk about backing up the old saying of "paper doesn't refuse ink". What aggression and what winning is he talking about? GMAFB.

Adding CarGo would give the Sox an interesting if not very balanced look to the lineup. Consider: Eaton L Cabrera S Abreu R CarGo L Frazier R LaRoche L Lawrie R Catchers L/R Rollins S Mix in a right-handed compliment to keep LaRoche as far away from LH pitching as possible, and on paper, this looks ok. But success would really be predicated on comebacks by LaRoche, Cabrera, and Rollins. Without that, things will be tough.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Mar 3, 2016 -> 04:03 PM) Laugh all you want, but this is the same story we have received since the you can't spend a dollar if you only have 50 cents routine. They aren't going to tell you they are sitting on a pile of cash. They are going to tell you they are broke. When is the last year the White Sox ever were really trying to be competitive where they didn't say this exact same thing? I know people like to complain, but the Sox crying poor and John Danks getting lit up on March 4th is really a reach. Relax, Dick Allen. I wasn't laughing at you. I was actually acknowledging your comment that they have the money for an OF, which I fully agree with. All I was doing was simply pointing out they were only half way there. As in, they have the money for the outfielder - they just don't actually have the outfielder. (Yet?)

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Mar 3, 2016 -> 03:55 PM) They offered Fowler a contract. Man, some people will buy anything. When the Sox talk money, THEY ARE LYING. We get the same story every year. They try to stretch the budget, competitive Uncle Jerry says OK. The Sox have money for another OF. For the love of God, learn from the past. How many times have they cried poor only to pick up more payroll? A lot more than when they have cried poor and the payroll remained the same or went down. Besides, if the difference between Avi and another OF is a playoff team vs. a team that wins 78 games, there aren't a lot of teams that can afford that particular guy anyway. Lol - well, at the moment they have the money. They just don't have the other OF.

QUOTE (fathom @ Mar 3, 2016 -> 03:46 PM) To me, it also means their attempts to get the big outfielders was more for public perception than anything else. They succeeded then in cementing a certain "public perception".

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Mar 2, 2016 -> 10:12 AM) Selling high is a terrible strategy for winning. I'd go so far as to say it's the polar opposite of trying to win. No thank you!

QUOTE (shysocks @ Mar 1, 2016 -> 10:29 AM) Hawk said we had one of the best defensive outfields last year so don't worry about it. He also says many times that the #1 rule in all of baseball is to "catch the ball". He's right about that. Which is why the configuration of Cabrera in left, Avi in right, last year's Rollins at short, and the uncertainty of what we are going to get at second and in center (not to mention, catcher), is cause for concern.

QUOTE (ptatc @ Feb 28, 2016 -> 02:58 PM) No but the constant bashing of the ownership and not the players is. You blast them for spending money on free agents (LaRoche/Cabrera) but want them to spend twice that amount on another one. Instead of blaming the onwership for spending money and not spending money at the same time you should throw a little blame at the players for not performing like they are capable of doing. I would guess most fans are frustrated with the team and their performance. However, I would also say I thought the team on paper looked pretty good last year with all of the additions. It was the players who did not perform to their capabilities last year. Where does the buck stop when evaluating the continued lack of results of this team?

QUOTE (BigFinn @ Feb 28, 2016 -> 04:05 PM) The end of the Veeck era was a turbulent time for the Sox. If you google "Marvin Davis to buy the White Sox," you can read about oilman Davis' attempt to buy the White Sox and Comiskey Park, move the Sox to Denver, and lease Comiskey Park to the Oakland A's (probably after Charley Finley sold the A's to a new ownership group). Next came the DeBartolo fiasco—and I apologize that I got the city wrong, it was New Orleans—and finally Veeck sold the club to Jerry Reinsdorf and Eddie Einhorn. You can google "Ed DeBartolo to buy the White Sox" and read articles about that non-sale as well. While Jerry Reinsdorf and Eddie Einhorn have made some mistakes and stepped on some toes over the past 35+ years, they did bring us the 2005 World Series Champions. "SOME mistakes"? Lol - "understatement" called and said you just made a MAJOR one. Good lord, Reinsdorf & Einhorn have been a disaster over the last 35 years. There is NO arguing that. Look at their record: their many organizational missteps have had the cumulative effect of the organization being in the shape it is today. And here we are today, with our Chairman admittedly continuing to be the dominant voice in the day-to-day decision making, continuing to contribute to the make-up of our team's composition. As a result, look at this roster. Look at the missed opportunities this offseason to enable it to compete this season. I mean, W-O-W!! Who among you feel confident in this management team's ability to put together a roster now and going forward capable of reversing this team's fortunes of recent years to compete for something meaningful?

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 28, 2016 -> 12:15 PM) Irrational in the sense that you seem to think that one thing is all that matters. So the desire of a fan for his/her team to win is somehow "irrational"? Gotcha. Thanks for shedding some light on your position on the matter. Says it all right there!

QUOTE (BigFinn @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 06:53 PM) When Jerry and Eddie bought the team back in 1981, Bill Veeck was flirting with the idea of selling the Sox to the DeBartolo family. They were going to relocate the Sox to Tampa-St. Pete. So, thank you Eddie Einhorn (and Jerry Reinsdorf) for getting involved, buying the White Sox, and keeping the team in the South Side of Chicago. Rest in peace, Eddie. HUH?!?!? That is not true at all. There was absolutely ZERO discussion at that time of DeBartolo moving the team to Florida. None whatsoever, unless I missed something, in which case it would be helpful if you could produce a reliable source supporting this claim. What we do know is one party that did threaten such a move, and that of course was from the Jerry Reinsdorf/Eddie Einhorn regime back in the mid-to-late '80s.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 28, 2016 -> 10:51 AM) That is actually not true. It is when it gets irrational, repetitive, and obsessive. Literally all you post is about Sox management being horrible. Honestly Dick Allen and I have had major differences over the the years, and nothing about his posting has even approached what you give. He can at least give rationale and linear thoughts, and be involved in more than one discussion. Rational = evaluating actual results and facts, such as the Sox' record of performance. Irrational = casting baseless aspersions about an entire fan base. Irrational = making references to an organization's level of resources when you have no facts to support such references.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 28, 2016 -> 12:55 AM) The crown is all yours. Unfortunately for you and Dick Allen, what the two of you constitute as "moaning, complaining and whining" is only those instances where someone posts a point of view different than that of yours, and in particular, if it's even remotely critical of Sox management (oh god forbid!). I'm sure if someone got on here and savagely ripped the fan base like you do all the time, you wouldn't count that as moaning, complaining or whining whatsoever. Although now that I mention it, we don't see fan base bashing messages too often around here, mostly just from you. Wonder why that is!!

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 06:12 PM) I hate bumping old threads, but I also hate when posters rip a move with the benefit of hindsight. Thad, I got no beef with you, but you've been ripping Hahn quite a bit lately on the LaRoche & Melky moves. And based on the post above, it doesn't appear you were against the LaRoche signing at the time. In fact, I'd say you were mildly excited based on that "not too shabby!" comment. Ha! I just saw this. I have no problem whatsoever you bumping this up and reminding me of something I once said. No problem at all. In fact, just reading that post, I am reminded of course of the optimism I shared with most of you about those deals. And why were we excited and optimistic? Because we thought that FINALLY, after nearly ten years since the World Series, with only one brief (and unsuccessful) playoff appearance in-between, these particular moves represented a legitimate chance to reverse our fortunes and return the team to the postseason. And then 2015 happened. So let's take a moment here and talk about a fan's rights, i.e., a paying consumer's rights, when it comes to reacting to deals made by the team they follow, support, and with whom they invest time, energy, and money. A new acquisition will have three stages: before, during, and after. The before is at the time of acquisition, the during is when the player is playing during the season, and then the after is after the season is completed. We as paying fans are entitled to an opinion at all three stages - before, during, and after, based on what we know at those points in time. As it relates to Cabrera & LaRoche, I fully admit at the time of acquisition I was excited and hopeful they would perform at a level whose efforts collectively would elevate the team from the pitiful play of recent seasons to that of a playoff-worthy contender. You talk about bumping threads - there are a gazillion of them buried somewhere in this site of where I'm very clear about my desire for my team, these Sox of ours, to WIN, WIN, WIN. I am very tired of all of the losing seasons we've had to endure under this ownership/management team. And so even though I am critical of the owner and his management team, I nonetheless want the moves they make to work out. I wanted LaRoche to hit 30 home runs and knock in 100 runs. I wanted Melky to be a far better player than he was last year. These weren't moves I made, obviously, they were made by Hahn and Williams, but of course I supported them. Why? Because I want the team to win, and "on paper" they looked "not too shabby". I am similarly excited about Frazier "before" we head into this season as well, based "on paper" how it looks like he might contribute to whatever slim postseason aspirations this current roster has. Let's remember one important fact in all of this: we are not the ones paid the big bucks to come up with these deals and put together these teams year after year after year. We are simply the paying customers, some of whom, like myself, are results driven. The folks in the front office are purportedly greater baseball minds than any of us, which is fine, but then prove it. Construct rosters with players who together will produce an exciting team for our beleaguered fan base, one that actually gets to the postseason and actually goes deep into them, which has only occurred once in our lifetimes. If you get those players who make that happen, I'll be the very first one to applaud at the time of acquisition, "during" the season while the players are excelling at their craft, and "after" the season, "in hindsight", when we are celebrating a successful season. But until that happens, if management team's decisions continue to produce the results like we've seen the past decade, and if their major acquisitions like Cabrera, LaRoche and Garcia continue to produce like they did last year, I will certainly have something to say about that. Again, as customers like we all are who invest time, energy and money into this product, I think that's a privilege we all have to do so.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 11:04 PM) Yes.LMAO. Your post from last year was dug up for all to see. The whiner got exposed. LMAO! No one complains, whines, or moans more on this site than you. Not one person.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 10:55 PM) Hindsight is a beautiful thing. Without it, you like LaRoche, were hoping they would spend even more on Matt Kemp, and thought Abreu, Kemp, LaRoche, and Avi made a nice middle of the line up. Your complaining is a joke. If they listened to you, the payroll would be higher and the team worse. LMAO!

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 01:28 PM) How much Is available? I agree they have some money to spend but that doesn't mean you spend it all. It has to make sense. Does giving Cespedes $30 million for 2016 and the option to walk away if he is good after one season , or be stuck paying him big money if he is a flop make sense? Does giving Alex Gordon at his age $100 million make sense? How how should they go with Fowler before it makes no sense? Sometimes spending money makes you money. Sometimes spending it foolishly means you won't have it when you need it. Great question, Dick Allen. When the team signed Belle to that record setting contract (at the time) for the combined $55M that it was, the team's net worth then was $144M. The team's net worth now is approximately $976M, and yet since that extraordinary explosion in wealth amassed by the ownership group, the largest contract they've handed out was the paltry (by comparison) one they gave to Abreu for $68M. That puts the Sox in the exclusive company of being the only team outside the friggin' A's and Pirates who have not offered a contract greater than $70M to anyone. Now it would be one thing if Reinsdorf & Co. could point to a track record of achievement and accomplishment to say "Hey, our way has worked!". But very sadly, they can do no such thing. The team hasn't won more than 90 games in a decade, and the last playoff appearance was eight years ago. The owners have gotten massively rich over the years, while meanwhile, we the fans have been treated to the delight of watching the likes of Dunn, LaRoche, Rios, Beckham, Flowers, Gillespie, etc. trying to ply their trade, with no postseason appearances remotely in sight. Money was spent foolishly on many unsuccessful second and third tier type players during the past ten years (don't forget the likes of Linebrink, Teahen, and Keppinger!). Perhaps it would be better spent on fewer yet far more talented ones going forward. It's not an approach the team has tried in the past, but given the horrid results of the approaches they have tried, it might be one worth looking into.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 07:09 PM) Which is exactly why this team shouldn't go throwing money around, just because. Ah, so you admit that throwing money at second tier free agents such as the contracts given Cabrera and LaRoche were mistakes by Hahn. It appears you are right about that.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 07:08 PM) Picking out one contract from 20 years ago with no actual look at what revenues or anything else was is the only fallacy in this thread. It is quite literally making more stuff up to get mad about. Lol - I wish I had a greater population of contracts such as the one Belle signed from which to cite. That contract from 20 years ago marked the last time our "big market team" acted like a big market team in the market. And since that contract signing, our Sox have managed to make a meager THREE appearances in the postseason in the 19 years since. I know such stats are inconvenient for you and make you mad when they are brought up, SS2K5, but they remain the facts. Sox management doesn't compete the way a big market team ought, and the record sadly continues to reflect their lack of effort in that regard.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 01:28 PM) How much Is available? I agree they have some money to spend but that doesn't mean you spend it all. It has to make sense. Does giving Cespedes $30 million for 2016 and the option to walk away if he is good after one season , or be stuck paying him big money if he is a flop make sense? Does giving Alex Gordon at his age $100 million make sense? How how should they go with Fowler before it makes no sense? Sometimes spending money makes you money. Sometimes spending it foolishly means you won't have it when you need it. You mean like the money we spent on LaRoche and Cabrera right now that could have been spent on one of the premium OFs in free agent this offseason?

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 01:00 PM) lol. Payroll is triple now, what it was then. But now we are cheap? What? This is a real stretch, even for you. Lol - I didn't say we were cheap. Those are your words, not mine. I'm just pointing out the fallacy of suggestions the Sox are operating under "limited resources" at the moment. They are not, not by a long shot.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 27, 2016 -> 12:23 PM) Their payroll was $45.7 million versus somewhere around $125 million today. Correct, that was their payroll in 1996 - which was fifth highest in baseball at that time. But with the same crappy attendance in '96 as in '15, they went out and signed the largest contract in the history of the game at the time. So what revenue stream existed then that apparently is not present today, that limits the team now to a middle-of-the-pack payroll of $125M?

QUOTE (Lip Man 1 @ Feb 26, 2016 -> 09:07 PM) Belle's deal was the largest in baseball history at the time and stunned the other owners. The media speculation at the time was that JR deliberately made it higher than it should have been to "pay back" the other owners for settling the labor situation of 1994-95 which wasn't to his liking. Whatever the reason or reasons it cost him a position on the Labor Advisory Committee that gave recommendations to the commissioner. He was removed from it by the other owners shortly afterwards. Mark For the "Boo hoo, the Sox just lack the resources to compete for premium free agent talent" crowd, it's worthy to note that the Sox drew fewer people in the season (1996) prior to signing Belle than the Sox drew last year. Yet the Sox magically had the resources then to go ahead and offer that then-largest contract in baseball history. And the last I looked, that contract never came close to crippling the organization financially. So this nonsense that this team with all of the extra TV money it has now that it didn't have back when they signed Belle is somehow now "out of cash" and operating with "limited resources" is just that - nonsense.

QUOTE (Lip Man 1 @ Feb 26, 2016 -> 09:07 PM) Belle's deal was the largest in baseball history at the time and stunned the other owners. The media speculation at the time was that JR deliberately made it higher than it should have been to "pay back" the other owners for settling the labor situation of 1994-95 which wasn't to his liking. Whatever the reason or reasons it cost him a position on the Labor Advisory Committee that gave recommendations to the commissioner. He was removed from it by the other owners shortly afterwards. Mark Sigh...if only Mr. Reinsdorf was in a snit with his fellow owners this offseason when Cespedes, Upton, and Gordon were available...