steveno89

Great post. We all were disappointed at the winter meetings for the Sox, but the front office has delivered and still is not likely done. Fans need to wait until late March to really get an idea of how the roster is going to shake out. Until then, patience. Hahn and Co. knew they could not squander this offseason, and substantial moves needed to be made to help 2020 not be a lost season in a winnable AL Central. I really like how we are still well positioned to make a splash or two in next year's free agency, with Colome/McCann/Herrera/possibly Encarnacion? all coming off the books.

Collins will be headed to Charlotte where he would get a ton of playing time. He can be called up if Grandal/McCann go down with an injury.

Sox have to be considered the heavy favorite to sign him at this point I would imagine. No other clear suitor currently exists.

Sox still have a long way to go towards proving they will realistically compete with the Twins. Lets say the Sox are better by ten games and the twins are worse by ten. Sox win 82-83 games and the Twins win 90-91. Still not really striking distance unless a ton goes right for us.

Sox should not be giving him that kind of money. I think he ends up getting quite a bit less than that, either in terms of years or dollars. Yes, he is still relatively young and in his prime, but I question whether his bat is really good enough to justify that kind of expenditure. You are talking about a bat only player who is a defensive liability and may be limited to DH. Those guys do not command big years or money in FA.

Much rather ink EE to a one year deal for $8-10 million than screw with a multi year agreement for Castellanos around $14-16 million. Castellanos is a poor defensive outfielder, and more suited to being a solid DH. I'm not crazy about paying him to be our DH medium to long term.

Castellanos is not getting $80+ million guaranteed. Not with his poor defense.

I do not love the Castellanos fit for the Sox, unless the cost is really reasonable His best value would be at DH due to how poor his defense grades out in RF. I'd rather go one year with Encarnacion and evaluate next offseason than buckle up to Castellanos for three to four seasons.

Castellanos makes the most sense as a DH, but I'm leery of going three or four years to such a poor defensive player.

I think Scooter Gennett could make a ton of sense for the Sox. Handles 2B for a month or two and then can shift into a utility role at 3B/2B/OF.

Jeff Passan @JeffPassan · 7m Second baseman Cesar Hernandez and the Cleveland Indians are in agreement on a one-year, $6.25 million contract, sources familiar with the agreement tell ESPN.

Kuechel is not going to be a #1-2 guy in our rotation. We need Giolito to continue to prove himself, and a guy like Lopez/Cease/Kopech to step up and grab that #2 starter role. Keuchel can be that solid, veteran #3/4 starter who can our young staff get better After missing on Wheeler, what other option beyond Keuchel was realistic? I'd rather have him than Ryu given the extensive injury history, also Dallas is a little younger.

Have to think the Sox are the odds on favorite to sign Encarnacion after Shaw signed with Toronto. Outside of somewhat blocking Collins, I see zero risk in a one year deal for $8-10 million. Cesar Hernandez/Scooter Gennett. Gennett intrigues me with his ability to play 2B/3B/OF. Hernandez would be ideal to man 2B until Madrigal is ready. Neither would require beyond a reasonable one year deal. I'd really like McHugh in the mix as a swingman/reliever. Provides us greater depth in the pen, and could take on a variety of roles. Essentially an upgraded Covey. Cost should not be too high either. None of these moves would be overly splashy, but each would make us better equipped to compete in the central division.

I want Collins to get a shot as well, but we need to sign EE to take the lion's share of the DH at bats. If we want a shot at the central in 2020, we cannot risk Collins taking a dump at the plate. I'd love to give Collins at bats to prove himself, but it might not be fully in the cards. With the 26 man roster, it allows us greater flexibility to rotate EE/Collins/McCann/Abreu/Grandal around the lineup.

Sox did not go through a rebuild to punt Madrigal and Vaughn in a trade at this stage. You have to think the organization views each of them as key pieces moving forward to aid contention. We just are not close enough to be pushing all of our farm chips in to try and win right now.

Curious to see what Grandal thinks of Ryu?

Sure, deals have broken from rando's in the past, but this guy has zero credibility

99.9% chance Stinky Bob is full of crap

Kopech absolutely will pitch at least a month or two in AAA Charlotte. I think the Sox look to add another starter either via trade or Ryu/Keuchel. Kopech can be brought along when he shows he's ready

He's way better than Santiago Gonzalez has had a really underrated career, with over 32 WAR (fangraphs). There's still upside to this signing that many might not realize.

One year deal for $3-5 million I'd guess as well. Low risk deal, and I think he still has some gas left in the tank. Hard for anyone to dislike this move as long as we look to add a higher quality option(s).

We could do far worse from a hopefully fifth starter I like the move, as Gonzalez is probably the best backend starter still on the market and gives us a left hander in the rotation. Should not be more than a reasonable one year deal.

Robert Murray @ByRobertMurray Sources: #WhiteSox closing in on a deal with free-agent pitcher Gio Gonzalez.

I'm not sure I see Ryu getting four guaranteed years given the extensive injury history. I think he will get a nice three year deal and remain west. Keuchel should be our target on a three year agreement

The Sox are not throwing Vaughn into any deal sort of a cost controlled premium starting pitcher.