Eminor3rd

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jan 17, 2012 -> 03:38 PM) I don't see why teams would give up much at all for Floyd. He's not even league average. If/when the Sox deal Floyd, there are going to be some upset posters here given what should be a pretty lackluster return. Not even league average? He's significantly above average. He's going into his age 29 season and his WAR totals the last three years are 4.5, 4.3, 3.6. Compare that to a guy like Matt Garza (3.1, 1.6, 5.0) EDIT: League average is ~2.0

QUOTE (gatnom @ Jan 16, 2012 -> 03:56 PM) I think you're proving the point that our current model doesn't work right here. Way more often than not, we have not had seasons where we make it to the playoffs regardless of how you want to define us as being competitive. Our model needs to be adjusted to take into account that minor league system because that's the thing we have the most control over. Also, we must have different definitions of incredibly successful... This is a good point. It's like they say to hitters in slumps, "don't try hard to make your mechanics like they were when things were going, solve the problem as it is now." It doesn't matter what happened before when we were successful - we aren't successful now and we need to do whatever looks like it makes the most sense to become successful. A tangent: it seems like every year I think we should be good, we suck, and every year i think we're going to sucks or be middling, we're good. Is it possible we've just been lucky a couple times?

QUOTE (DirtySox @ Jan 16, 2012 -> 12:24 PM) Yep. Could be a great move. I'm starting to think Floyd isn't going anywhere though. Likely not, I agree. If some surprise team swoops up Oswalt though, I think it increases the chances a lot. Red Sox won't do a multi-year for Jackson, and Boras will snatch it up from some non-contender before it gets desperate enough that he has to sign for a year or two in the spring.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Jan 16, 2012 -> 12:00 PM) 1.) Oswalt is a bad risk for the money when you consider the switch in leagues. 2.) Oswalt likely wants to go to a contender. On a one-year deal, he's nearly guaranteed to move at the deadline if he's on a non-contender. So he'll be in the postseason anyway, assuming he doesn't get hurt.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 16, 2012 -> 11:12 AM) Yes. I would prefer to trade Floyd now and have Oswalt on just a one year contract....and then deal him at the deadline as well. I suppose the greatest argument against that is that we MIGHT be competitive in 2013 if Floyd's still around, but he's not the kind of pitcher to anchor a staff around and he's going to be blocking Stewart/Molina/Castro/Axelrod/Santiago eventually. It's a pretty risk gamble for KW, though. Standing pat and keeping Floyd around is another form of gamble, because we're not getting a return on him compared to what we might be able to get back in trade for the future. If I had the chance to swap Floyd with all his salary for something solid and grab Oswalt for $8m for a year, I'm all over it assuming my medical team think he can hit 150 IP this year. We're in a good position to eat the deficit in innings from Buerhle/Floyd with our veritable plethora of similarly-mediocre SP prospects. This will be a year where we get to look at a ton of guys, methinks.

This is interesting: It would sort of imply that a Floyd trade would be preferable than an Oswalt signing, so long as the White Sox would be willing to pick up some of the cash. Though picking up cash hasn't been something the White Sox have been willing to do this year, it does mean they'd get back more prospect value in the deal. If this were the case, it then might be possible/make sense for the White Sox to sign Oswalt on a one-year after moving Floyd if they picked up say, only about half of Floyd's salary in the deal. Oswalt would gladly take the deal, being that with NYY and BOS (and potentially TEX with a Darvish signing) out of the running, it may actually be his best chance to be pitching for a contender by the end of the year, either via deadline trade or in the unlikely event that the Sox would compete. I don't know, stranger things have happened. It's probably more likely that Darvish signs with TEX this week and Oswalt panics and accepts a $4m deal with BOS or something. Thought I guess KW could approach Oswalt and tell him to hold his demands on BOS because he'll offer him $8m if he can move Floyd. Is that immoral? The business man in me says no, but I have no idea if that sort of thing ever happens.

Sox should not sign multi-year FA starters this year. I would say that someone like Oswalt at $8m would make sense if we were a bit lower on payroll (to hope to move at the dealine/dupe casual fans into thinking the Sox are tryin to win), but if we're sitting at $110m already, it's probably not in the books, unfortunately.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 15, 2012 -> 12:10 PM) Well, we don't have the usual "keep him away from Walker as long as possible" posts to worry about this season. There's that. Supposedly, Cespedes hasn't played under the lights in 10 months, that was his excuse basically for the 3 strikeout game. 1 for 10 with an infield single now, I believe.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Jan 14, 2012 -> 10:37 AM) They already signed Carlos Silva, Aaron Cook, & Vincente Padilla. They will be fine. Those are the type of signings that serve as a backup plan if you can't get the guy you actually want. QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 14, 2012 -> 10:52 AM) Signing a boatload of suck worked for the Yankees last year. Sometimes emergency crash landings work out alright too, but no one ever thinks it's a good idea to plan on one.

QUOTE (Middle Buffalo @ Jan 14, 2012 -> 07:35 AM) I don't understand why teams don't make the Yankees pay a premium when they trade. They should always be forced to include an extra prospect or two in a trade because of their ability to outspend everyone in free agency. How do you give up a 23 yr old guy who throws 95-100 coming off a solid rookie season? Dumb trade. Not when you consider how risky young pitchers are when it comes to being injured.

Kuroda is one year for $10m

Holy s*** the Yankees strike! Pineda AND Kuroda on one night. You gotta figure the Red Sox HAVE to get a SP now. Floyd maybe?

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/c...talents-in-mlb/

QUOTE (southside hitman @ Jan 13, 2012 -> 11:30 AM) The high ranking on Thompson made me look up his stats and I gotta say, I was impressed with the power. He still strikes out far too much but he has decreased his K percentage every year and adding in his power and defense I think he might be a real prospect. I’m more pleased by the 10% walk rate that is trending upward. It’s certainly not awesome, but workable, and moving in the right direction.

QUOTE (rowand's rowdies @ Jan 13, 2012 -> 11:28 AM) Cespedes goes 0-3 with 3 Ks and a hit by pitch in his DWL debut...could it have gone any worse for him? Scouting report say he couldn't handle slider. I'm so glad he is doing this, lol.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 05:16 PM) Except arguably Cespedes is the best player (along with Gourriel) to come out of Cuba in this current generation of players. DeAza was a waiver claim, largely due to injury/depth issues with the Marlins, but cheaply available nonetheless. At the least, Cespedes will get around $20-25 million. And we've seen some guesses for $50-60 million on the top side of the range. Nobody would have given Alejandro $1 million+ guaranteed when he left Florida, or a major league contract. He was claimed October 20th, 2009. Many teams in the majors passed on him, presumably. I'm not sure what you're arguing. His price will be determined by the market. All I'm saying is that his performance in the DWL will help teams decide if they think he has a shot at immediate MLB playing time or if he'll need time in the minors. In the former instance, teams will be willing to pay much more for him than in the latter instance.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 05:13 PM) Realistically, the only player who really could play 2B and clearly outproduce him offensively (based on 2011) is probably Brent Lillibridge. Despite Marty's please, we can't trade Alexei and move Brent to SS. But playing everyday at 2B might be his ultimate destination. If only we could have 100% confidence in Rios and, to a lesser extent, DeAza. That lack of depth is another reason (besides his clear inability to stick at 3B) that has had Viciedo moving all over the diamond...but we put Gordon Beckham through the same process, and one wonders if 2 position changes didn't do a number on him? Certainly, it couldn't have helped. I have seen nothing to make me believe Lillibridge can play competently in the infield.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 01:35 PM) Then, by that measure, Alejandro DeAza should have an open competition with Lillibridge for the starting job/leadoff role in LF/CF. Because Alej pretty much sucked this winter in 100+ AB's. Not at all. De Aza has a track record of MLB play. Cespedes does not, so if Cespedes sucks or plays in the middle of the pack, then that's the only data we have to go on, so we assume he rates with those players. I'm just saying that comparison is awesome for GMs because they'll know if they have a MLB player or a prospect, and can more accurately value him.

Man, a hot start WOULD be incredible.

Sounds like Edwin Jackson

QUOTE (DirtySox @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 11:35 AM) Kevin_Goldstein Kevin Goldstein Multiple reports, originally from @kevcabral , have Yeonis Cespedes joining Aguilas Cibaeñas in the Dominican Winter League. 2 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply That's cool news. If he doesn't demolish the DWL, he belongs in the minors.

Ton of interesting stuff on Cespedes' comps: http://claydavenport.com/?p=97

Strange how different this list is than the others we've seen. Also, is it pronounced SIGH-mun Castro or Sih-MOAN Castro?

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 10, 2012 -> 04:46 PM) Then you don't want to do a Tampa rebuild,. The Tampa 10-year plan is a myth. The first six of those years were under completely different management than the current regime and they royally jacked everything up the whole time. The new FO only took 4-5 years to get where they are now, and they were in horrible shape top to bottom when they began.

QUOTE (2nd_city_saint787 @ Jan 10, 2012 -> 02:38 PM) So what happens if Dunn and Rios are good next year and you've traded everything else around them? You have to give them a shot at turning it around under the new coaches. Then we add at the deadline using our newly acquired prospects. "What if our bad team plays well?" Then great! But only a fool would operate and plan on the assumtion of that happening. Look, in an ideal world, we could always just keep all our expensive players in case they might play better, but money is an object, whether the fans like it or not, and whether JR is making money or not.