MLB 2021-2 off season thread

[Chicago White Sox]

On White Sox Talk Podcast, Chuck is predicting the Sox sign both Semien & Conforto.  I know that doesn’t mean much, but he usually isn’t this optimistic with his predictions.

[ron883]

1 minute ago, Chicago White Sox said:

On White Sox Talk Podcast, Chuck is predicting the Sox sign both Semien & Conforto.  I know that doesn’t mean much, but he usually isn’t this optimistic with his predictions.

Holy shit, maybe that means Jerry will actually be opening the pocketbook. Chuck usually has some insight into the organization. @Jack Parkman get ready to eat a steaming pile of crow. 

[caulfield12]

Taylor is definitely not an everyday SS....he's much better than 2B and all around the OF, although a team would be better served playing him in LF, then RF...compared to CF.

$200 million seems a BIT too high based on Semien's age (if he was 29, maybe?) and relatively recent "bust out" performance-wise, and you've also got his off 2020 abbreviated season where he did a JD Martinez disappearing act.

 

Someone had him at $136 or 138 earlier in the thread....split the difference (with $200) and you get $168, which would likely be the very low starting point of Tim Anderson's contract extension discussions in 2024.

Edited November 19, 2021 by caulfield12

[hi8is]

Did we sign Ray Finkle yet?

[caulfield12]

Just now, hi8is said:

Did we sign Ray Finkle yet?

Sean Young instead?    At the very least, we need some Dan Marino Isotoner gloves mentioned.  

For some reason, I can't get the image of Don Shula having his hand snatched by Jim Carrey hiding inside of a mailbox out of my head.

[hi8is]

4 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

Sean Young instead?    At the very least, we need some Dan Marino Isotoner gloves mentioned.  

For some reason, I can't get the image of Don Shula having his hand snatched by Jim Carrey hiding inside of a mailbox out of my head.

I love lamp.

[fathom]

18 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

 

Someone had him at $136 or 138 earlier in the thread....split the difference (with $200) and you get $168, which would likely be the very low starting point of Tim Anderson's contract extension discussions in 2024.

Wait, Timmy’s going to be a free agent in a few years

[maloney.adam]

23 minutes ago, hi8is said:

I love lamp.

 

Edited November 19, 2021 by maloney.adam

[hi8is]

5 minutes ago, maloney.adam said:

https://youtu.be/gId6nrMDmUU

 

[Jack Parkman]

47 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

Taylor is definitely not an everyday SS....he's much better than 2B and all around the OF, although a team would be better served playing him in LF, then RF...compared to CF.

$200 million seems a BIT too high based on Semien's age (if he was 29, maybe?) and relatively recent "bust out" performance-wise, and you've also got his off 2020 abbreviated season where he did a JD Martinez disappearing act.

 

Someone had him at $136 or 138 earlier in the thread....split the difference (with $200) and you get $168, which would likely be the very low starting point of Tim Anderson's contract extension discussions in 2024.

Wait, Semien isn't 29? 
I thought he was, that's why I thought he'd get $200M

[BigHurt3515]

3 minutes ago, Jack Parkman said:

Wait, Semien isn't 29? 
I thought he was, that's why I thought he'd get $200M

Took me 11 seconds to google his name to find out he is 31

[CWSpalehoseCWS]

57 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

On White Sox Talk Podcast, Chuck is predicting the Sox sign both Semien & Conforto.  I know that doesn’t mean much, but he usually isn’t this optimistic with his predictions.

Chuck has really dove into homer territory the past few seasons. Sometimes I feel like he says stuff just to say it. Hope he is right, but I would be beyond shocked.

[Chicago White Sox]

7 minutes ago, BigHurt3515 said:

Took me 11 seconds to google his name to find out he is 31

But wouldn’t it be easier to remain uninformed and have free reign to say whatever you want?

[Jack Parkman]

1 minute ago, Chicago White Sox said:

But wouldn’t it be easier to remain uninformed and have free reign to say whatever you want?

I was just on MLBTR the other day and thought it said he was 29......I must have been looking at the wrong line. 

My bad. 

I still think he's going to get $150M+ though. 

Edited November 19, 2021 by Jack Parkman

[Chisoxfn]

3 hours ago, Sambuca said:

I would be extremely happy with any of the three, but Option B would make me the happiest.  

Does anyone know the last time we had an all RH starting staff?  Anyone know of recent success stories in MLB?  I have no concerns with any of those pitchers doing well individually, but wondering if being all RH is known to have a negative effect on the staff.  

Option B looks pretty stellar - that said I’d like the Marte / Marte combo and Scherzer. Screw it - go big or go home. 

[hi8is]

1 minute ago, Chisoxfn said:

Option B looks pretty stellar - that said I’d like the Marte / Marte combo and Scherzer. Screw it - go big or go home. 

That happens and I’m intentionally pooping my pants for shits and giggles.

[Chicago White Sox]

Just now, Jack Parkman said:

I was just on MLBTR the other day and thought it said he was 29......I must have been looking at the wrong line. 

My bad. 

All good…I’m just glad we can agree now he’s not getting $200M.

Also, I never realized how average Semien’s StatCast numbers were last year.  He put up an xwOBA in the 53rd percentile and even 2019 was only in the 77th percentile.  He usually beats out his xwOBA by 0.007 to 0.020 points, but last year he exceeded it by 0.037.  He is normally a pull heavy hitter, but was even more so last year with almost all his HRs being hit to LF.  Throw in a flukey K rate in 2019 and his average hitting prior to said season and there are definitely some red flags there.  Don’t get me wrong, he’d be great to have, but I’d still prefer Conforto all things considered.

[YouCanPutItOnTheBoardYES!]

2 hours ago, Chicago White Sox said:

On White Sox Talk Podcast, Chuck is predicting the Sox sign both Semien & Conforto.  I know that doesn’t mean much, but he usually isn’t this optimistic with his predictions.

That most likely doesn’t mean anything, although it is somewhat interesting because Garfien and the other White Sox Talk people typically try to carry water for the organization and temper the expectations of the fanbase. So for him to straight up say that is noteworthy to at least some degree.

[SoxAce]

5 hours ago, Jack Parkman said:

Wait, Semien isn't 29? 
I thought he was, that's why I thought he'd get $200M

You are so full of shit it's unbelievable at this point.

[Lillian]

Semien has also become an exceptionally good hitter versus RHP, for a guy who bats from the right side. Take a look at his split stats, in recent years. Sure would make Sox fans forget about "Nicky Two Strikes".

Adding Conforto and Semien to that lineup would make it the most potent in baseball. If they added a top of the rotation starter, another bullpen arm, and a defense first, back up catcher, they might just become odds on favorites to win it all next season.  If Garfein is correct, it would appear that Mr. Reinsdorf is all in, which means that he would also be willing to fund the other necessary acquisitions. LaRussa knows the value of pitching depth and wouldn't advise spending all of the resources on offense. 

It certainly would be surprising to see the Sox spend that kind of money, but maybe the Chairman expects to capture the city's fan base, by putting together a roster that grabs the spot light. Fun to dream big, at any rate.

Frankly, it seems like overkill, with more offense than needed. Adding Semien and Conforto to an already good lineup of Anderson, Robert, Moncada, Abreu, Eloy, Grandal and either Vaughn or Sheets, is probably not the best allocation of player salaries. Remember, this team did not have either Eloy, or Robert, for most of last season. I'd prefer one solid middle of the order, LH bat and more pitching depth. Bring back Rodon, sign another capable starter and a good set up man, for the pen. It seems like a team needs about 7 starters to overcome the injuries, in this era. 

 

Edited November 19, 2021 by Lillian

[Dick Allen]

4 minutes ago, Lillian said:

Semien has also become an exceptionally good hitter versus RHP, for a guy who bats from the right side. Take a look at his split stats, in recent years. Sure would make Sox fans forget about "Nicky Two Strikes".

Adding Conforto and Semien to that lineup would make it the most potent in baseball. If they added a top of the rotation starter, another bullpen arm, and a defense first, back up catcher, they might just become odds on favorites to win it all next season.  If Garfein is correct, it would appear that Mr. Reinsdorf is all in, which means that he would also be willing to fund the other necessary acquisitions. LaRussa knows the value of pitching depth and wouldn't advise spending all of the resources on offense. 

It certainly would be surprising to see the Sox spend that kind of money, but maybe the Chairman expects to capture the city's fan base, by putting together a roster that grabs the spot light. Fun to dream big, at any rate.

 

For $100 million +, I hope he can make fans forget the league minimum Nicky Two Strikes. Remeber, the Sox didn't sign Machado becasuse they said they couldn't afford his 8th year. They just jacked up the cost of 2B for years before that. That trade was a disaster, and I am not anti-Kimbrel.

Edited November 19, 2021 by Dick Allen

[Sarava]

7 hours ago, Chicago White Sox said:

On White Sox Talk Podcast, Chuck is predicting the Sox sign both Semien & Conforto.  I know that doesn’t mean much, but he usually isn’t this optimistic with his predictions.

That would be insane. Sign these two guys and find a way to trade for a TOR starter, and the Sox become one of the World Series favs easily.

[Kyyle23]

15 minutes ago, Lillian said:

Semien has also become an exceptionally good hitter versus RHP, for a guy who bats from the right side. Take a look at his split stats, in recent years. Sure would make Sox fans forget about "Nicky Two Strikes".

Adding Conforto and Semien to that lineup would make it the most potent in baseball. If they added a top of the rotation starter, another bullpen arm, and a defense first, back up catcher, they might just become odds on favorites to win it all next season.  If Garfein is correct, it would appear that Mr. Reinsdorf is all in, which means that he would also be willing to fund the other necessary acquisitions. LaRussa knows the value of pitching depth and wouldn't advise spending all of the resources on offense. 

It certainly would be surprising to see the Sox spend that kind of money, but maybe the Chairman expects to capture the city's fan base, by putting together a roster that grabs the spot light. Fun to dream big, at any rate.

Frankly, it seems like overkill, with more offense than needed. Adding Semien and Conforto to an already good lineup of Anderson, Robert, Moncada, Abreu, Eloy, Grandal and either Vaughn or Sheets, is probably not the best allocation of player salaries. Remember, this team did not have either Eloy, or Robert, for most of last season. I'd prefer one solid middle of the order, LH bat and more pitching depth. Bring back Rodon, sign another capable starter and a good set up man, for the pen. It seems like a team needs about 7 starters to overcome the injuries, in this era. 

 

After last years injuries and piecing things together, i am all for overkill 

[Sarava]

28 minutes ago, Lillian said:

Semien has also become an exceptionally good hitter versus RHP, for a guy who bats from the right side. Take a look at his split stats, in recent years. Sure would make Sox fans forget about "Nicky Two Strikes".

Adding Conforto and Semien to that lineup would make it the most potent in baseball. If they added a top of the rotation starter, another bullpen arm, and a defense first, back up catcher, they might just become odds on favorites to win it all next season.  If Garfein is correct, it would appear that Mr. Reinsdorf is all in, which means that he would also be willing to fund the other necessary acquisitions. LaRussa knows the value of pitching depth and wouldn't advise spending all of the resources on offense. 

It certainly would be surprising to see the Sox spend that kind of money, but maybe the Chairman expects to capture the city's fan base, by putting together a roster that grabs the spot light. Fun to dream big, at any rate.

Frankly, it seems like overkill, with more offense than needed. Adding Semien and Conforto to an already good lineup of Anderson, Robert, Moncada, Abreu, Eloy, Grandal and either Vaughn or Sheets, is probably not the best allocation of player salaries. Remember, this team did not have either Eloy, or Robert, for most of last season. I'd prefer one solid middle of the order, LH bat and more pitching depth. Bring back Rodon, sign another capable starter and a good set up man, for the pen. It seems like a team needs about 7 starters to overcome the injuries, in this era. 

 

In the Sox 3 losses to Houston, they scored a combined 6 runs. 2 of the 4 games they only scored 1 run, which basically gave them no chance to win. That went along with what we often saw from this offense, particularly after the all-star break - they were an all or nothing offense. All or nothing offenses tend to get shutdown easily in the playoffs, as the Sox were.

To me it's crazy to think this team doesn't need offense. As I said in another post, see the Dodgers as an example. They traded for Mookie Betts while they already had the deadliest roster in baseball. Then won a World Series. Then traded for Scherzer and Turner the next year, but came up a bit short.

This all said, they must get a TOR starter. If they were to sign Semien and Conforto, to me that leaves no place for Vaughn. So you sign those 2 guys and try to move Vaughn for a very live arm for the rotation. Probably a young up and comer that doesn't cost a ton of dollars, since the dollars would be heavily spent on the 2 free agent bats.

[Lillian]

If they signed both Semien and Conforto, Vaughn would become expendable and better utilized as trade bait for pitching depth. The lineup would be dangerous, one through 9. In fact, one would be challenged to construct a lineup, given the fact that somebody has to bat in the bottom third of the order:

Versus RHP:

SS Anderson

3B Moncada

CF Robert

1B Abreu

2B Semien

RF Conforto

LF Eloy

C  Grandal

DH Sheets

That lineup has 3 RH hitters batting consecutively, in the middle of the order. However, how else could it be constructed. It wouldn't make sense for Robert, Abreu or Semien to bat any lower, especially with how well Semien hits RHP. That is why it just seems like overkill. Perhaps, Conforto and Escobar make more sense, with the money saved, spent on pitching. Escobar would cost a fraction of what Semien will get. Moreover, Vaughn could still be traded for pitching, as there is no room for him, even if Escobar is added, instead of Semien. 

Edited November 19, 2021 by Lillian