Eminor3rd

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 5, 2014 -> 05:20 PM) I think the expanded playoffs have hurt interest in MLB's regular season. Go back to division winners only making the playoffs. Teams with the best record in each league get a buy to the championship series and plays the winner of a best of three series between the second and third seeded teams. Championship series goes from 7 games to 5 games. That's an interesting take because the whole point was to INCREASE interest in the regular season by having more teams in contention, and, by extension, encouraging players to not trade veterans at the deadline.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 5, 2014 -> 03:58 PM) Of course you can do that, but sitting at a ballpark for three hours with kids and not buying them anything makes for an unpleasant experience for all involved in most cases. One that you do once and don't do again. Ok so spend $20 more. Is $60-70 really that crazy for a night out for four people these days? Food at the movie is just as overpriced as food at the ballpark. Same thing at Chuck E Cheese or wherever the hello else kids want to go.

QUOTE (chw42 @ May 5, 2014 -> 03:44 PM) He definitely deserved the AL ROTM over Tanaka. I'm not sure about Player of the Month though. Abreu was 12th in the AL in wRC+, behind both Adam Dunn and Dayan Viciedo. Black ink though

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ May 5, 2014 -> 10:06 AM) I think it's pointless as a tool to rank superstars or even good players, and should never be used as an end-all for determining value. We already know good players are good, because they produce. You can't say player A is "better" than every other player with a lower WAR because players have different jobs. I think it's an excellent tool for finding value in non-superstar players when constructing a team but I doubt front offices give one hoot about WAR. I don't think you understand what WAR attempts to do. I'm not saying that patronizingly. It's all about removing bias and context. It's all about being objective. Player X may be an elite baserunner while Player Y is just an above average hitter, but if hitting is more valuable (objectively) than baserunning, Player Y is the better player. The mechanism from where this value is derived is based on linear weights, and this is the part of WAR that is most solidly correct and doesn't need work -- valuing offensive events precisely and accurately in relation to themselves. The whole point is NOT to give a guy a subjective bump for something -- it's to strip away all the BS and see who contributes the most to a team winning, no matter what is more exciting or hard to find or whatever. EDIT: It is precisely that challenge of ranking players across their different "jobs" that makes it useful.

As soon as both teams are good again, this will be a big deal again.

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ May 5, 2014 -> 11:21 AM) Is it wrong to assume that the Walkers and Mitchells were a heavy favorite of KW, the type of player he looked to develop? All around athletes who showed promise at baseball? Seems like it is/was. Oh, absolutely. I'm just saying that I disagree with it, or at least have learned from him being wrong about/our system being bad at it.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ May 3, 2014 -> 11:24 PM) I am going to bump this. I would like to hear opinions.. There were at least 4 scouts at the game today video taping his at bats, 2 of which were home runs batting Right handed.. And he has more power left handed. Both were hit at least 390 feet. Generally speaking, I am ALL for drafting positionless, one tool guys that can hit in the later rounds. I think the hit tool is the most important and that our team has been a case study on it being harder to teach than people want it to be. After about round 4, give me Dan Vogelbachs and the other teams can have the Kennyn Walkers.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 3, 2014 -> 07:24 PM) The Angels did. The Mariners picking 2nd were torn, and they were wrong.the Yankees thought he was the best player in the draft. His point is that Trout didn't fall because of signability, he fell because people were wrong about him.

The reality is that MLB, like any successful business that relies on media, has been evolving its channels of consumption with the development of technology. Fewer people are showing up, but more and more are watching on TV and on mlb.tv. All that "new TV money" stuff that everyone is talking about didn't just fall out of the sky. The contracts are bigger than ever because consumption is being redistributed across several channels. This is the nature of media. The teams will be just fine if they facilitate this constant distribution; if they continue to make their product available via the channels that fans are demanding. They need to build these changes into their budgets. Expect fewer through the gates, more through digital, and maximize the yield from all channels.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 3, 2014 -> 11:30 AM) Masterson is the mid-rotation starter that people are clamoring not to sign. How much are you willing to spend on him? It's unbelievable that you still don't understand the difference between a 32-year old trainwreck-turned-bounceback free agent this past offseason, and a 29 year-old consistently solid free agent next offseason. We don't hate free agents, Marty, we hate s***ty players.

Yeah that pitching staff looks very Astros-y right now.

I don't think it's anyone's "fault" that the rivalry is dead right now, it's just the teams both suck. Both fanbases are disenfranchised. It's hard to care about who is king of a pile of s***.

Who was it that used to do that awesome PDF of payroll commitments that was stickied every year. Was that you, Jake?

QUOTE (pettie4sox @ May 2, 2014 -> 02:02 PM) I rather Semien get more ABs than Beckham but whatever. I'm tired of Hawk slobbing on his knob too. It's just borderline f***ed up. It really is. It's almost like Beckham is actually Hawk's illegitimate child. Hawk talks about his mom almost as much as him.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 2, 2014 -> 03:52 PM) That's right Paulino was a free-agent. Funny aside, I don't see how a bad contract hurts a team more than having an awful farm system. Is this mad-libs? Is that what we're doing? I feel like an idiot. Ok. That's right Bartolo Colon was a firefighter. Anxiety aside, I don't know how a microwave oven treats a sailboat more than having a hilarious yellow card.

QUOTE (Charlie Haeger's Knuckles @ May 2, 2014 -> 03:33 PM) Man. Next Year is Gonna Be Awesome When We Dont Have All This Rother Dead Waight On The Teem. Dunn Gone GIDPK Gone PAULEEN-O Gawn Neeto wont need to be on the 25 mens rosters. 291 DAYS 10 HOURS 26 MINUTES 35 SECONDS until pitchers and catchers report! lol

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 2, 2014 -> 03:15 PM) The thing you don't get is the alternative to not filling holes via free agency is just as risky as these killer contracts. Did you even read what I just typed? If you did, how did you come away with the notion that I think we shouldn't fill holes via free agency?

QUOTE (CyAcosta41 @ May 2, 2014 -> 11:52 AM) My feeling, exactly. I think the wise Rick Hahn is talking up Rodon at every opportunity precisely because he wants nothing to do with him. And, more accurately, nothing to do with the Scott Boras Freak Show. For those that say the new rules diminish the Boras-factor -- could not disagree more. If Rodon was in a class of his own, with no warts (and I don't think either of these things are NOW true), and you had the opportunity to draft Rodon at 1-3, then you do it and deal with Boras the best you can. But, there are other options. Good options. Hahn is an attorney. There's this concept known as "negligence per se" ... meaning, more-or-less, negligence so very obvious it's universally recognized as negligence. A franchise who rarely has a shot at a #3 pick who then hitches their wagon to the Boras Mule ... man, if that isn't negligence per se, I don't know what is. Boras could be a thorn in THREE (3) related, but conceptually different ways: 1 -- Demanding 1-1 money (or more) at 1-3 ... and if the Sox don't pay, they lose the pick when he goes back to school (getting next year's #4 pick is NOT a valuable consolation prize in my world). 2 -- Same as above, but the Sox pay. And paying 1-1 at 1-3 seriously impacts signability and overslot candidates for the rest of their draft. 3 -- THIS ONE CONCERNS ME THE MOST -- with Scott Boras in charge, you have absolutely zero future chance of locking in a quality young arm long-term as they've done with Sale and Q ... and as the Sox need to do going forward to compete financially. Personally, whenever I think of this draft, I assume there is NO Rodon. Since the Sox (IMO) want no part of all of his baggage, he may well as not exist. So, best case for the Sox is that he goes 1-1 or 1-2, then they're getting the SECOND pick in THEIR universe, choosing from amongst Kolek, Aiken, Hoffman, or even Jackson (I know that he's a Boras guy too ... but very different situation), LESS whichever one of the above is off the board. Can't wait for this draft already!!! It seems to me that many here are forgetting that Boras' ultimate goal is to make the most money for his client -- it is NOT to create ultimate chaos. Boras is not a villain who is trying to trick teams into failure. He's just trying to maximize the dollars. It also seems like many forget that the player has ultimate decision. Boras will attempt to convince the player one way or the other, but there are plenty of guys who won't turn down $6m for the shot at $8m or whatever. The player is the one that assumes the risk. If Rodon goes three and decides not to sign for a penny less than #1 slot value, he took some bad advice. Boras is smart man who gets what he wants most of the time. If he jerked teams around, gave bad advice, and exploited clients, he wouldn't keep getting new business.

QUOTE (pettie4sox @ May 2, 2014 -> 02:58 PM) Why Beckham in the 2 hole? The universe is a mysterious place

lol Marty. Are denying that you've been calling for us top sign practically every major free agent that has been on the market over the last few years? As we've all explained nigh 8000 times, no one is against the concept of acquiring elite free agents in general. Our problem with your recommendations is (1) that you tend to want to buy whoever is available, whether they're really worth it or not. All free agent classes are NOT created equal, and (2) that you are ignoring the fact that signing someone to a multi-year deal today means they are still on the payroll in the future. Yes, you can sign more than one big one, but really only a few. Ubaldo Santana wouldn't kill us this year, but when you want to add another couple players next year, all of a sudden we're getting close to maxed out for the next 5 or 6 years -- hopefully they are all defying aging curves and hopefully we guessed right that we'd need them. The reality is that FAs pay their maximum value upfront, and so you need to time their acquisition with when you need them most. Sign them when they are the final pieces.

QUOTE (LDF @ May 2, 2014 -> 10:23 AM) but the subtraction of players now in the majors will indeed drop the rank. yeah we will improve via the draft. not enuf in the short term. I disagree. Who will lose rookie eligibility? Semien, probably. Leury for sure. EJ might not at this point. Davidson probably won't at this pointAvisail had already lost it. It may be only Semien in the top 5.

QUOTE (LDF @ May 2, 2014 -> 10:10 AM) when a farm is ranked from #20-25 and some of those prospect graduate. I wonder what the ranking is going to look like now I expect it to continue to improve with a strong draft. This is the highest we've picked in a long time, and we are committed to spending competitively like never before.

QUOTE (LDF @ May 2, 2014 -> 10:29 AM) I was trying to find the write up about Cleuluis Rondon in the future sox top 25 prospects... is it there? what is the prospect details on him? Until his good start this year, he didn't even have enough bat to rank. A full good year should, I imagine, get him on the radar for next year for sure.

QUOTE (LDF @ May 2, 2014 -> 10:25 AM) I respect what is being said by you guys, but why would they look at a prospect ranked from #14-19, unless they want to save slot money and/or they didn't want to deal with a possible hard sign. I think it's because things can still change. The reason guys fly up draft boards is because every team is checking on them and sometimes they decide they like a guy better than they did pre-season.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 2, 2014 -> 10:30 AM) Last year, a lot of posters wanted the Sox to tank to get the #1 pick. That pick at the time was Rondon. If somehow an uninjured Rondon is available at #3 and the Sox draft someone else so they have a few extra dollars to sign someone not so highly thought of, to me would be the biggest waste of draft position. Do you pass on Chris Sale so you can get Gavin Floyd and Jared Mitchell? Of course not, but it's not solely a money issue. If he falls to 3, it's because he's a worse asset than he was this time last year. Posters were drooling over #1 Rodon, not #3 Rodon.