Boopa1219

Report from MLBTradeRumors.com: Zach Links expects right-hander Justin Masterson to settle for a pillow contract to rebuild his value after a down 2014 and $12MM for that one year could make sense. I personally don't think that he's worth $12N for one year.

Just going to post this here but here is what some people are saying is the top prospect for 2017 Jevon Ward... http://www.perfectgame.org/Players/Playerp....aspx?ID=432890 Back to 2015: here are some guys that you should check out. Mitchell Hansen, OF : He's a 6'4 195lbs, OF from Plano, Texas. Lean, yet athletic build that has room for projection and additional strength. Roberts to be a top level defensive outfielder in the pros and he has a good set of wheels. Bats from the left side and he has a spread batting stance and he has a short swing with simple mechanics, fast hands and some shift in his legs that allows for line drafts. He consistently squares the ball up and projects to be a high average hitter, who also hits for power. He's is a great all around athlete and he projects as a true five tool player. Kody Clemens, SS/2B : The son of Roger Clemens. Kody stands at 6'1 170lbs and hails from Houston, Texas. He has a slender athletic build, plenty of room to get stronger. Good defensive player with above average arm strength and good range. Left handed hitter, quick short swing with very good bat speed, line drive contact with some right centerfield gap power, looks to pull the ball, projects as a good hitter. Polished player with athleticism and present skills. I personally think he projects better at second base than short stop. Kyle Tucker is my favorite player in this class and at this moment he is who I hope the draft at 8, along with Ryan Mountcastle in the second round, who very much reminds me of Evan Longoria. And yes, the kind of player I covet should be obvious by now.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Oct 3, 2014 -> 03:15 PM) Thanks everyone, this was fun to write. we'll probably add it as an FAQ of sorts to the site later. That's a great idea, and please keep the content coming.

I really wanted then to draft Reetz badly, he can really hit. Other guys I wanted were Monte Harrison, Jacob Gatewood and Forrest Wall

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Oct 5, 2014 -> 05:30 PM) Thank you for sharing this. IMO, Danish and Montas would have ranked above Hawkins. Not sure I understand that one. I take it that he was ranked higher because of how much improved and bounced back. Personally, outside of Rodon he has the highest ceiling in the system.

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 5, 2014 -> 04:53 PM) no, it is just his opinion and you and Joshua has a point and believe me when I say this a valid opinion. I would never have known about Heyward unless I read this thread. Thank you

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 5, 2014 -> 04:37 PM) when the sox went to sox out Abreu, the sox was in the beginning of rebuilding. the sox org, esp KW did not know that much about Abreu. it was there that KW call JR after the showcase and raved about him JR trusting KW and his excitement and over bid even to KW surprise. it was during this season and all the other players did the sox org realize they had players to compete. so in essence, if other teams realize how great Abreu was, do you think that the sox would have outbid for his services? I am saying that if the market had more demand (Meaning if the Red Sox, Dodgers and Yankees didn't have first basemen.) there would be no way he plays in Chicago. If I remember correctly, the final three teams bidding Abreu were the Sox, Houston and Colorado.

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 3, 2014 -> 01:06 PM) oh yeah I totally agree with yous guys. you remember last yr draft, there were about 4 certified top 3 picks. then Jeff Hoffman got hurt and then the domino chips starts to fall. that was exciting and made things more of an anticipated wait and see. that kind of excitement is what make the draft great. btw, look at the 2nd rounder who the sox pick. he was projected to be a late 1st rounder, he fell to the 2nd rounder and for me screwed up my hope for a catcher in the 2 round who I was following. Who?

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Oct 5, 2014 -> 01:11 PM) This has to be the lamest excuse ever. Now I know you're trolling. The Sox need a middle of the order lefty bat, better defense in RF and are looking for core players are in their early to mid twenties, that's Heyward. Its academic. Nah I don't want him. He can't stay healthy, strikes out a lot and should be a better hitter than he's shown to be. At his age, it's harder to get better.

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Oct 4, 2014 -> 01:18 PM) Heyward will not turn 26 until August of 2015. Oh yeah, Abreu is 2.5 years older than Heyward but it didn't stop the Sox now did it? Heyward fits into the age group that Hahn is looking for in a core of players. Abreu was more of a pressing need, and he is the type of player that the Sox would normally not be able to get.

QUOTE (Chilihead90 @ Oct 1, 2014 -> 04:31 AM) This thread got me thinking. What's the hardest throwing Asian pitcher we've seen in the MLB? Is it Tanaka? I think he sits around 93-94? Seems like there has never been a flamethrower, at least that I can remember. They seem to teach finesse. Darvish, easily.

QUOTE (oldsox @ Oct 4, 2014 -> 12:27 PM) Cargo is Gold Glove OF; don't want to DH him. Last two seasons he's had finger problems, including a cyst that had to be taken out. How hard is it to fix a damn finger? The reason his road numbers are worse is because Coors Field causes an adjustment to be made when they go on the road. If he played in Chicago, he wouldn't have that problem. Cargo is an MVP waiting to happen. Hahn should go after him. I have no idea what kind of pitching package they would want, but Hahn should find out. You do not Cargo on the Sox, you think you do but you don't. He's getting old, he's often injured and he can not hit away from Coors. Not to mention that he owed about $12 million annually till 2018. We just cleared all of our bad contracts, and now you want the team to acquire another one... Tisk Tisk.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 4, 2014 -> 12:35 PM) Depending on what we see on the trade market this offseason...Heyward is the guy I've got in the corner of my eye next offseason. He would be a long term fit because he's so long, he's a guy who covers lots of ground on defense and has plenty of offensive ceiling, he'll be extremely expensive but that's the one big money FA who could be an ideal fit with our needs. If we haven't solved that corner OF spot by next offseason and we have the ability to offer big deal....I'd be intrigued. QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Oct 4, 2014 -> 12:27 PM) I agree with everything you say here, especially about the Cards and their farm. Problem is attendance. Sox fans have shown they will not come out and watch mediocre baseball. In 2007 the average attendance was 36,511, in 2014 it was 20,896. Every year it keeps going down. It can't be easy getting TV adverts when the camera shows all those empty seats. Adverts must be thinking " who the hell are we targeting?" and judging by the declining TV audience I'd say there's something to that. Heyward is not that young, he's going to be 26 at the start of the season. And if the Sox just play solid and competitive baseball, the fans will come back, albeit slowly.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Oct 4, 2014 -> 12:09 PM) I agree with this. Plus the idea of moving players around to different positions because they supposedly suck at one doesn't mean they are going to do better magically at another. I kind of believe that if you can't play defense when you make the mayors then forget it Good thing you're not in player development then. Teams have coaches that teach players about fielding and playing at certain positions. Joey Cora was that guy for Ozzie, and Ron Washington was that guy for Art Howe.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Oct 4, 2014 -> 10:22 AM) Let's start with the startling +65 for Gordon/dyson/Cain....and overall positive 45 for all royals outfielders. The white sox were not surprisingly at -23 for 23rd (among all outfields), with viciedo being fourth worst in the majors and Garcia not much better. The one that jumps out is Alexei Ramirez at -5. With the unlikelihood of competing in 2015, a trade would seem the most logical move, also keeping in mind his offensive regression in the second half. We have -17 at first base (last overall), -12 at third, -10 in left and -21 in right. Catcher was league average and 2b +2. Unless we play Sanchez there we are likely to be negative with semien and/or Micah. Not even counting Dayan, we have three black holes in Abreu Garcia and Conor. The only player/position to grade out well was cf/eaton at +9 and one of the fifteen or so best individually. Other than trading for lagares inciarte nava Leonys Martin parra Heyward Jackie Bradley jr. Kiermaier or dyson we're not going to see wholesale improvement and most of those aforementioned players are offensively challenged. If there's such a thing as the Walt hrniak of defense we need him now and badly. Where did you get this info from?

It's something that needs to be discussed. He is already 6'4, 240 and he's only going to get slower and bigger out there. Plus moving him to first could help improve the team's overall defense.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Oct 4, 2014 -> 11:50 AM) What makes you think Garcia would be a plus defender at 1B? I like his athleticism and his arm strength, both which I think are superior to Abreu's and it would be really hard for him to be worst in RF.

I like the metric, although I am a huge proponent of sabremetrics, I think that's it's something that you should use to get an idea of a player's value on the field rather than taking it fave value. Defensive metrics are still a work in progress. However I am not surprised by this, the Sox are horrible defensively and that is a area that needs to be improved this off season. I still stick to my idea about moving Garcia to 1B and Abreu to DH. Garcia leaves much to be desired on the field and I think he could be a plus defender at 1B.

I would like to see the team try to shop Alexi this offseason, because I don't think he pays for the Sox after 2015 and there are some teams out there who desperately need a shortstop and would overpay for his services. I would do not want Viciedo on the Sox anymore, I would trade him for whatever is out there. He is still young enough that he could improve, but I'm tired of his underperforming and I think a change of scenery will do him well. I think Rodon could use a little more seasoning in the minors before he's up for good and I see him joining the rotation sometime in June or July. I really want the team to shop every player on the roster and see what kind if offers are out there. Maybe hey could pull of a deal that can bring them some major prospects who can really put the finishing touches on the rebuild. (Looking at you Yankees, Dodgers and Pirates.) And can we get the defense shored up, that's a few more wins right there. Oh and I really do like Nolan Sanburg and I think that he can be the ace of the bullpen going forward like. Johnny Venters or a Chad Bradford. http://www.minorleagueball.com/2013/2/6/39...prospect-report

QUOTE (LDF @ Oct 4, 2014 -> 02:15 AM) I will honestly say that I did not know of him before and since the sox drafted him in the 33 round. 20 going on 21 by all rpts has a nice mix of hitting tools. but those are from the stats I was able to find. the other posters who does the minor league may have more. I'm talking about the pitcher the Sox signed out of Latin America.

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Oct 3, 2014 -> 11:48 AM) Its not about just filling a hole, its about getting players to help this team win to be competitive. The Sox don't have the fan base to do a baby step rebuild like the cubs have been doing. Hell, the cubs are finding out that even their fans are growing tired of it and want a competitor. Again,I'm all for collecting young talent but this is a team that is currently looking at a speculated 2015 payroll of around 50M, a team that once had a payroll of about 128M in 2011. They have plenty of room on the field and in the budget to make this team competitive. I'm not saying the Sox must sign a player or two that have draft pick compensation attached to them, I'm saying it should not be ruled out, not at this point anyway. If Hahn put together a few trades and signed a few relievers, signing one or two FA could end up being the missing pieces to winng the division in 2015. I won't rule anything out. I like watching young players develope but I love watching the White Sox win! What did that $127M payroll bring the sox? And just because you have a lot of room to operate from a financial standpoint, you don't have to spend it all in one off season. What I am trying to say is that having a big payroll doesn't guarantee success and just because you have money to spend, you shouldn't blow it all immediately. I personally think that the team is farther away from contending than most people. I think that 2015 will be another building year (The 'goal' next year is .500 in my opinion and it's what I expect) and the team won't be competitive till 2016. I don't want it to sound like I am overvaluing draft picks, but they are very crucial to the health of a franchise. Look at teams like the Cardinals for example. The Cardinals are the best organization in baseball in my opinion and they are always in the mix for the title because they have a constant stream of home grown talent coming up from the farm, you never see them sacrificing draft picks ever, unless it's for a player that will bring them over the hump. The Sox need all the draft they can get right now, yes the farm has improved but it still has a ways to go. The Sox shouldn't be relying on FA to fill holes, that's what got the team in the position it is now, we need those draft picks to give us those internal options. I am not saying that I don't want the team to sign any FAs, I just don't think that they should one if a draft pick is attached. I love watching the Sox win just as much as you do, I just want them to start looking towards the future more as opposed to just the following season.

What do you think about Luis Martinez?

The team is in no position to forfeit any draft picks

Great article.

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Oct 3, 2014 -> 12:53 AM) I find it interesting how you quoted my post instead of Wite's. I wonder why that is... I agree that we need draft picks to keep the farm going so that it can help feed the MLB team in the future. However, this team needs to continue improving if the Sox are going to get some butts back in the seats. The Sox don't have the internal options to fill the holes they have, not to make the team competitive anyway. So they just MIGHT have to sign a FA or two to fill those holes and try to make them a competitor or at the very least try to improve another ten games in the win column in 2015. I like you, that's why. On a serious note, that period of drafting from 2007 - 2011 is why the team has been in the position (Some might call it a rut) that it has been in. The team needs those draft picks to fill those holes internally. The team needs to continue collecting and developing amateur talent, and avoid signing guys with QO's just to fill a hole. They should only sign guys with QO's, if they think that it brings them over the hump in regards to a championship and in my opinion the team is still another year away from competing for the division. Baby steps... baby steps.