Black_Jack29

QUOTE (Dunt @ Apr 25, 2016 -> 12:59 PM) You could target a guy like Reddick and switch Eaton back over to center and carry May as a 4th OFer which would give the team pretty nice depth and good speed off the bench. I'm all for Reddick, but good luck landing him. Especially in this winter's thin FA market.

QUOTE (OmarComing25 @ Apr 25, 2016 -> 11:54 AM) This past offseason, the Sox got a new 2B, 3B, CF, SS, 2 C, and a SP without spending much money or giving up much talent, so I'm not sure why you say there's "no way" to fill all the holes with acceptable talent when they literally just did that with more holes to fill. It'll be difficult, sure, but not impossible. A lot can happen in 2 years too, seeing as how literally no position player from opening day 2013 is even on the team anymore. While that is true, the Sox have traded away most of their halfway decent minor leaguers (Semien, Trayce, Phegley) and have far less depth than what they had a year or two ago. They can't draw from that well forever. They had to swing a three-team deal to land Frazier, since the Reds were unimpressed with the Sox's prospects. Also, the SS, 2Cs, and SP are one-year rentals, which means that the Sox will have the same problem next year. Rollins and Avila are marginal ML starters at this point in their careers, and I'll be very happy if we get half a season of productivity from Latos. So, yeah, the Sox are able to fill all of these holes using their current strategy. The problem is that they're forced to take a lot of veterans off of the scrap heap.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Apr 24, 2016 -> 04:01 PM) There's no chance this team goes through a complete rebuild with this pitching staff. Top 3 starters are possibly the best top 3 in the league. Latos appears to be the real deal (though not signed for 2017) and the bullpen is top notch at least 5 deep. Fulmer is due in 2017. Anderson fills the SS hole in 2017, and all the Sox really need to go outside the org to get is an outfielder and a DH (or 2 OF and move Melky to DH). Plus with Danks off the books there will be plenty of money to deal with. It's not unprecedented. The Sox had one of the best pitching staffs in AL in the early/mid-90s and, when they didn't win, they traded away Blackjack, Fernandez, Alvarez, and Hernandez in a two-year period. The Sox will need two SPs, a CF, a DH, a SS, and at least one veteran C next season. (Fulmer and Anderson will fill two of those positions, though it remains to be seen whether either will be better than replacement-level in the majors. And, no, Latos is not "the real deal." Look at his career numbers/injury history.) The following season, they'll need a 3B, a 2B, and a LF. There's no way that they can fill all of those holes with acceptable talent. They're going to have to overspend on free agents (again) and put up with a couple of guys who can't hit (again). That's what happens when your minor league system doesn't produce players that can hit ML pitching. Personally, I'd like to see the Sox stay in go-for-it mode until July of 2018. All bets should be off at that point. If they're not getting to the playoffs by then, I'd trade Sale, Quintana, and Robertson. I'd try to extend Abreu and Frazier in 2017. Thankfully, the Sox are currently 13-6, so there's a decent chance that we may not need to worry about that scenario.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 25, 2016 -> 08:24 AM) For my two cents, I am not changing a thing about Melky right now. He is my #5 hitter and LF until he stops being as hot as he is. I am not chancing changing anything that could throw him out of his rhythm. That and the fact that he's currently giving Frazier nice protection.

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Apr 24, 2016 -> 01:01 PM) Avila and Navarro also on 1 year contracts as is Latos. Also lose Frazier and Lawrie the same year as Melky. Just don't see the Sox taking on too much more money with so many holes to fill in the next 2 years, unless its to take a stab at resigning Frazier and I wouldn't count on that. Unless the Sox become competitive enough to win a playoff round, I think there's a good chance that they go through a significant rebuild in the winter of 2017, as Anderson is their only position player who projects to be an every-day starter. They way they've been operating is unsustainable, and their payroll/lack of winning limits their attractiveness to free agents. I also wouldn't be surprised if Reinsdorf sold the team around that time. The one thing that you and I can agree on is that the Sox have limited options at DH for the remainder of the season.

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Apr 24, 2016 -> 11:44 AM) Bruce is a rental. Already have too many guys on 1 or 2 year terms. Prospects for rentals at this point after giving up so many is counterproductive to the health of the system. Bruce is a RF so you would move him to LF ? Cincinnati, in the Frazier trade, already seems to dislike our prospects and that was with Trayce , Montas, and M Johnson. Maye you DH him but the problem seems to lie in acquiring him especially given whatever competition there might be for him and Cincy not liking our guys. I would rotate Melky with either Bruce or Markakis at DH and LF. I don't think that the Sox are going to be able to make big-impact deals later this summer because they don't have any tradable pieces in the minors. The only incentive that the Sox can give another team right now is eating the contract of a player that they don't want to pay anymore. I agree that ATL would have to eat some of Markakis' contract. The big problem at the Sox have right now is that they'll likely lose Ajax at free agency this winter, they'll lose Melky to free agency the following winter, and they have nobody in the minors who is projected to be able to step up by then.

QUOTE (WhiteSoxLifer @ Apr 24, 2016 -> 12:07 PM) One more win this week and guarantees sox a winning april When was the last time that the Sox had a winning record in April? 2008?

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Apr 24, 2016 -> 09:47 AM) I think it's imperative that those kinds of moves are not considered at all until an internal option like Coats is tried. Maybe the Sox system doesn't produce a guy like Manzara with Texas or a Piscotty or Grichuk with St. Louis but we will never know until they are given a shot .There's nothing to lose , they can always be sent back down. Then we can try Morneau. Those moves would not preclude other moves being made like taking on big salaries and giving up more prospects would. Morneau just had elbow surgery. I'd rather pick up the salary of a healthy, younger guy like Bruce or Markakis than roll the dice on Morneau to save a few bucks. I don't have a philosophical objection to trying an internal option, but none of these guys look like they're ready to consistently hit at the ML level and we need somebody to step in and produce right away. As long as we're not giving up Fulmer or Anderson, I don't object to trading for a proven vet in his prime.

QUOTE (GreenSox @ Apr 24, 2016 -> 08:21 AM) Rollins has a sub .700 OPS with little power and a likelihood of improvement not in sight. Rather do a revolving door with Charlotte and see who sticks. Or, trade for old man Markakis who can get on base and wouldn't cost much. Put him in the 1 or 2 hole. Markakis is owed almost $30M over the next 2 1/2 years.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 23, 2016 -> 07:06 PM) I am sure they are looking for an outside addition , as I don't think Ishikawa provides much of an upgrade. But what is available mostly for money right now? I would imagine Jay Bruce. The question becomes do you want to blow your wad on 140 games with Jay Bruce or wait 50 or 60 games when more alternatives become available? I think I would go with Bruce although I am not a big fan. He does seem to have a pretty good attitude. If I were Hahn, I'd look to make a move sooner rather than later, when the bidding wars start. The Sox don't have enough in their minor league system to out-bid another team. I'm not too hot on Bruce (or Markakis), but I think that salary-dump players like those two might be the most realistic options for the Sox. The sooner the Reds and Braves move those guys, the more money they save, so there's some incentive to move them before the ASB. But I'm not sure if the savings are enough incentive to pass on getting potentially better prospect packages from other teams in July.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 23, 2016 -> 07:24 PM) He doesn't have a track record of hitting .130. In fact his first 23 games with the White Sox, he hit .349. Last year he was putting up decent numbers for a while. Yep, and this is the main reason why Avi is so frustrating. He looks good for a month or so, sucks for a few months, looks good for another month or so, sucks for a few more months, etc. Just when you're ready to give up on him, he teases you, and then eventually lets you down again.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Apr 23, 2016 -> 07:27 PM) What do they mean? When looking at these stats, how do you account for breaking balls not breaking, veteran pitchers working on certain pitches, and the lower overall quality of starting pitching (due to fringe MLB & minor league guys). Hanging breaking balls (and sliders) are not a phenomenon that's strictly relegated to March. The lower overall quality of players extends to hitters as well (both fringe pitchers AND position players attend ST camps). I've never argued otherwise, though I think it's fair for the Sox to give Avi another month or so to figure things out before they completely give up on him.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Apr 23, 2016 -> 07:18 PM) I'd really like to hear your reasoning on why spring training at bats aren't meaningless... While it's well-known that pitchers sometimes work on specific pitches in ST and are sometimes not bringing their full arsenal, it's not like they're throwing batting practice either. They ARE trying to get hitters out. So if a hitter is raking in ST, that doesn't necessarily translate to the regular season, but it does show that he's doing something right.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Apr 23, 2016 -> 07:02 PM) Spring training numbers are meaningless. Let's not use them as an excuse to suffer through more Avi than we need to. Not really. They mean something, though it's a limited something. The problem with Avi is not that he's always been horrible (he hasn't), but that he hasn't progressed at all. Nobody with as many PAs against ML pitching as he's had should be swinging at the junk that he's currently swinging at. He just can't seem to get the mental part of hitting right.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Apr 23, 2016 -> 07:38 PM) Garcia is still learning. Guys may have proven track records from 2015 and back but that doesn't do anything for this year. All I am saying is don't give up on a player so quickly. The alternative to him isn't always better This is true, but so many of his ABs have been awful. He's swinging at all sorts of crazy stuff right now. While it appeared that he was progressing as a hitter this spring, he's going backwards again. If I were Robin, I'd pencil him in at DH about three games per week and give him until June to figure things out. If he's still having bad ABs and struggling to get on base, I'd take him out of the lineup and have a talk with Hahn.

The tricky thing about Rollins is that the Sox realistically can't DFA him. Especially after the LaRoche fiasco. That said, I don't see the harm in Rollins spending time at DH right now. Avi looks worse than I've ever seen him, and I'm not convinced that Sands or any other in-house option is going to hit better than Rollins over the long-term. I also wouldn't mind seeing Saladino more at SS.

QUOTE (brett05 @ Apr 21, 2016 -> 05:46 AM) I'd like Josh Reddick. I think he'd be cheaper than Cargo and I would offer Reddick an extension in the areas of $15-18 million per. I like Reddick as well, but I doubt that he'll sign an extension here. If he wants to get paid, he'll hit the free agent market this winter.

QUOTE (Jose Abreu @ Apr 21, 2016 -> 07:38 AM) But if we need to spell Abreu for a day, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to put a good defender in Saladino at third and Frazier at first. That's exactly what I would do. It also avoids having to option a player down to the minors.

QUOTE (Soxfest @ Apr 20, 2016 -> 03:10 PM) Ask RV Yep. Sorry for the rhetorical rant.

Nice!

QUOTE (Soxfest @ Apr 20, 2016 -> 03:07 PM) He is NOT a 1b Then why in the hell is he playing there??? Frazier can play 1B. Put him there, Rollins at SS, and Saladino at 3rd!

QUOTE (SnB @ Apr 20, 2016 -> 03:07 PM) What happened? Fazier dove for a ground ball, Sands couldn't scoop his throw out of the dirt, the ball got all the way to the tarp, and Trout got thrown out trying to reach second.

Sands sucks at 1B.

Wow, that was crazy!

QUOTE (greg775 @ Apr 20, 2016 -> 02:41 PM) Damn. Frazier had plenty of time. Maybe he earned that error, but that was far from a routine play.