turnin' two

No joke. How miserable must you be in your own life to just want to tear down someone else for getting a chance to live out their dream.

My expectation is that they don't waste the careers of Moncada, Giolito, Eloy, Robert, Kopech, Cease and all the other guys. Well, actually that is my hope. I'm trying to fight the negativity of my actual expectation. Part of not wasting those guys is subsidizing them with veteran players. Grandal was a great addition. Mazara is an upgrade who is cheap and doesn't preclude them from upgrading (either from within or without) in the future. Is Keuchel a perfect addition? No. But he makes the team better. He buttresses the rotation. He relieves pressure on the bullpen. He is a huge upgrade over what they have had. If they have to eat a bad year on the backend, well that's the price to play. I bet the Yanks aren't expecting ace performances out of Cole for the last 3-4 years of his deal, even though they will be paying him like an ace. I don't think competing this year is out of the question. I think the Twins played as well as they possible could have last year. They have regressed already. Their pitching is questionable. The Indians are getting worse. Their lineup is soft, even with Lindor. The Royals and Tigers are bad. There are a lot of wins up for grabs from those 42 games. Adding to the rotation should be a priority. Whether it is Keuchel or Ryu or Bumgarner. They all fit the mold. Will they all be over paid? Maybe an extra year? Yeah probably. But it is time to wear the big boy pants. Maybe if injuries didn't occur they could have avoided overpaying. They happened. You need to adjust. Maybe if they drafted better and developed guys better they could have avoided this. They didn't. They have to adjust. Then they should add another backend guy with some ceiling. Wood. Or to a lesser extent Walker or Sanchez.

What??? Cmon man. Don't do that crap.

Who are you quoting here?

I wasn't a huge Walker guy to start, but I don't get all the hate for this move. Could the Sox have done better? Sure. But I don't think this is terrible. At very worst they got a 2 year stop gap that is at least a major leaguer. It gives guys like Adolfo and Basabe a chance to be the RF if they progress. I also didn't love the fit of Castellanos or Ozuna. While they are the best free agent OFers this year, they aren't ideal fits. If someone better becomes available, the Sox could easily make room for them. This is all contingent, of course in acquiring some pitching, both in the rotation and the pen. But I don't think this on its own is a terrible move. Walker was redundant in the system. So I think they got a MLB player for an older A ball player.

Why would the Mets be interested in Vaughn?

Sweet. Let's trade Robert for the ghost of Kluber. Awesome.

Ok, well, the easy question is who is a better solution? Who is this great, very complete player that the Sox could acquire?

Yeah, that is ridiculous. Or maybe it is because he has other skills that make him a good baseball player. Judging the quality of a player by one statistical category is crazy. Just like judging a player only by his weaknesses.

Don't you want the be the team that signs the next James Shields? You just don't want to be the team that trades for him. It turned out pretty well for the Padres...?

I wonder if plan B may be something like Keuchel, then add Treinen and Betances.

Ok, I checked. And last year he gave up the exact same number of HRs at home and on the road. . And of the 15 he gave up on the road, 4 of them (about 27%) were in 2 starts at Coors. Soooo..... not sure what your point is exactly. And while it is fun to say that Wheeler is better, the simple fact is that to this point, he never has been better. They are about 6 months apart in age, and Wheeler has never had a lower ERA. He has once had more IP. He has once had a better WHIP. Bumgarner routinely has a better BB ratio, and a better K ratio. You know why Bumgarner has so many more innings on his arm? It is because he is better. He has gotten better results. By a lot. Now, again, maybe Wheeler pitches better from this point on, he could. But even last year, Bumgarner had the better ERA, more IP, better K/BB, better WHIP, better H/9. So if he is so much better, I would think it would show in the results. It just never has.

I think everyone would agree with your maximum limit. Then everyone will lose their minds when he signs for well above the stated maximum limit.

Do you hate him because your avatar is a Dodger Logo? Or some other reason?

Well, he threw 111 in 2017 and 129 in 2018. And just how is being a workhorse taking the ball all the damn time and delivering very valuable innings pitched a negative here? Remember how much younger Samardizja's arm was than his age? This seems to be brought up all the time, but there seems to be very little evidence supporting it as any real factor in anything. Bumgarner is a workhorse. And he is one with a grea K/9 and BB/9. He gave up HRs last year. Ok. Didn't everyone? His HR/9 is .1 higher than Giolito's rate. Yeah he pitches in a big park. Didn't Wheeler too? Maybe he pitches to the park. This guy is one of the best pitchers of the last decade. He isn't some replacement level chump. He is 6 months older than Wheeler and a world more accomplished. He is the much better pitcher. Could Wheeler be better moving forward? Sure. But that would be a change in each of their trajectories.

You don't really think anyone is a good hitter though right?

If he is looking for a 6th year, making it what 6/120, I think you're better off just ponying up for Strasburg at that point.

They should just non tender him. I mean, he is only a 2 WAR (ish) player, so he wouldn't command any real return. That's how this works right? WAR is everything? ?

Can they? I know I haven't been super impressed with the options. Who, in your view is better, and cheaper? And again, I think the 10 mil is expensive for him. But he would certainly be a dangerous guy to have in the lineup in a couple of ways. Not that I'd expect him to hit 24 HRs again, but if he hits 15 and can steal 40 bases, that is a dynamic combination.

10 Mil seems a little steep for him, but he would work in RF I bet.

^^^

Kipnis. I heard him in an interview in 2016 saying it would be "cool" to lose the World Series to the cubs, and that was in like August or something. It was just a great take.

Tip of the cap the the Sox best (as in has had the most impact on the White Sox major league club) amateur international signing of the last 25 years.

If you know Ryu is going to be healthy (as you said, big if there) I don't think there is much doubt he is the better pitcher.

Increased K's are a part of the game now. You just have to accept it.