beck72 Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 AJ can't help but be an upgrade offensively over the Sox 2004 C's. Looking at his last stats from the last 3 yrs, though [courtesy of ESPN], he could add much more. *vs RHP, he hit .305/.353/.450 *hit the best vs finesse P's [the avg, journeymen type SP's who always seem to give the sox trouble] AJ hit .337/.364/.460 *hit avg G:F P's 2nd best w/ an OPS of .802 *hit P best the 2nd time he faced them in a game [the Sox have had trouble scoring during the middle innings. many times its taken the Sox 3 times through the lineup to get at a P. The Sox want to get an early lead, so their SP's can hand off a lead to our stronger 'pen] *hits best ahead or even in the count. [This shows he won't "beat himself". If a P gets himself in a hole by falling behind, hitters should make them pay. the Sox haven't done this well at all. AJ hit for an 1.091 OPS w/ a 1-1 count; a .940 OPS w/ a 1-0 count; and a .936 OPs w/ a 2-0 count] * hits well w/ RISP: a .316 BA and a.841 OPS * hits well w/ runners on 1st and 3rd: a .396 avg * hits well w/ a runner on 3rd: .375 BA and a OPS of 1.117 * hits well w/ the bases loaded: a .409 avg w/ an OPS of 1.047 * hits well w/ a man on 3rd * hits well w/ runners in scoring pos, 2 out: .294, .802 OPS AJ might not be a star. Yet he would seem to be a great complimentary player, someone who won't beat himself, who makes P's pay for their mistakes and falling behind in the count, who seems to step up his offense when the situation calls for it, who can hit avg P's very well [who make up the bulk of the leagues P's] AJ's bat would be a very solid addition to the sox everyday lineup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DBAHO Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 I think everyone knows stats wise, Pierzynski would be a serious upgrade to what we have now, it's only the chemistry impact in the clubhouse and the signing price which are still the question marks. Still I expect to see a deal done, although it will depend on whether A.J is willing to settle for a 1 year deal instead of a multi-year deal, which could be what the Sox are offering. If he is, the Dodgers would be back in the hunt, as Navarro likely isn't ready at this stage to be the everyday catcher in 2005. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lvjeremylv Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 To me, the attitude he would bring to the team alone would be worth the $2-$3M we'd pay him. Like I mentioned in the "Good News" thread, the Sox team over the past few years has been completely and utterly sackless (you need not look any further than Torii Hunter going out of his way to plow over Jamie Burke and the Sox doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to retaliate to see proof of that). AJ is not sackless, and he's not afraid of winning. Oh, and he'll also hit about .270-.290 for you, hit around 10-15 HR (career high 11 I think, but the Cell should be good for him), and drive in around 70. That's light years better than Ben Davis will do if he's the everyday catcher. It's win-win-win if you ask me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beck72 Posted January 4, 2005 Author Share Posted January 4, 2005 QUOTE(DBAH0 @ Jan 4, 2005 -> 02:30 PM) I think everyone knows stats wise, Pierzynski would be a serious upgrade to what we have now, it's only the chemistry impact in the clubhouse and the signing price which are still the question marks. Still I expect to see a deal done, although it will depend on whether A.J is willing to settle for a 1 year deal instead of a multi-year deal, which could be what the Sox are offering. If he is, the Dodgers would be back in the hunt, as Navarro likely isn't ready at this stage to be the everyday catcher in 2005. If the sox offered less than $3 mill a yr, it must have been at least a 2 yr deal. It would be an insult if it was a 1 yr deal for say $2.5 mill. Now if it was a 2 yr deal, with the 1st yr being $2.5 mill and the 2nd say $3.5 or $4 mill, that would be different. Even with AJ's "issues" he's worth Matheny and Damian Miller money If Aj were smart, he'd sign a 1-2 yr deal w/ a playoff contender, even for a little less cash, to re-up his value. Then he could become a FA at 30, a prime age. Seeing how AJ knows the AL's hitter and pitchers, that would be his best bet to have short term success. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChWRoCk2 Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 Why do i envision him going back to the minnesota twins? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beck72 Posted January 4, 2005 Author Share Posted January 4, 2005 QUOTE(chi-guy2 @ Jan 4, 2005 -> 04:39 PM) Why do i envision him going back to the minnesota twins? Not with Mauer there. And them paying good money for Mike Redmond to be his backup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Allen Posted January 5, 2005 Share Posted January 5, 2005 I think what AJ brings is a guy who was a major part of winning baseball teams. I think its really important when adding to a team, you add at least a few guys who have experience winning. So many times guys are picked up from cellar dwellar teams, and although they have nice obp's , era's etc. they haven't been around a winning environment, they've been putting up numbers playing meaningless games, and really don't know how to win. A lot of players have been studs in Montreal, only to be traded and become quite average. 2 obvious exceptions are Pedro and Vlad. MLB is not Rotisserie baseball. Teams have to know how to win. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WHarris1 Posted January 5, 2005 Share Posted January 5, 2005 A catcher capable of swining a bat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWSGuy406 Posted January 5, 2005 Share Posted January 5, 2005 Maybe someone can explain this to me, but if the Sox, or Kenny Williams specifically, is that confident that Pierzynski wouldn't cause any clubhouse problems, what's the big deal on giving him the multiyear deal? I don't see why giving him two year, six million (with a third year team option at four million, perhaps) is that big of a problem. Again, Jim -- you usually give great explanations on this thing, so maybe you can give me some insight. Why not give the extra year to a catcher who's only 27, a guy who you'll know you'll get a solid average from (and low strikeout numbers, something Ozzie likes, a real grade-A b**** at the plate), as well as (now, I'm saying this by reading Kenny's new comments on AJ) a guy that would give this whole team a kick in the ass, and be an ass to play against. Any thoughts, Jim? Beck? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoxAce Posted January 5, 2005 Share Posted January 5, 2005 Not sure if Iguchi is holdin the contract talks maybe cause imo, if he goes back to Japan, the sox would just give AJ the money left over (6-7 mil) and he'll see him soon. Maybe try and save alittle left but I hardly doubt Iguchi will recieve Kaz-type money anywhere else. If this happens, I think the sox might give a bench spot to a guy like Valdez (or maybe sign a cheap utility player) to fill that void. Just my two cents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raff Posted January 5, 2005 Share Posted January 5, 2005 great post beck. you make many good points. he will bring a central championship to the south side Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beck72 Posted January 5, 2005 Author Share Posted January 5, 2005 QUOTE(CWSGuy406 @ Jan 5, 2005 -> 12:24 AM) Maybe someone can explain this to me, but if the Sox, or Kenny Williams specifically, is that confident that Pierzynski wouldn't cause any clubhouse problems, what's the big deal on giving him the multiyear deal? I don't see why giving him two year, six million (with a third year team option at four million, perhaps) is that big of a problem. Again, Jim -- you usually give great explanations on this thing, so maybe you can give me some insight. Why not give the extra year to a catcher who's only 27, a guy who you'll know you'll get a solid average from (and low strikeout numbers, something Ozzie likes, a real grade-A b**** at the plate), as well as (now, I'm saying this by reading Kenny's new comments on AJ) a guy that would give this whole team a kick in the ass, and be an ass to play against. Any thoughts, Jim? Beck? Right now, it seems like there aren't a lot of teams he's negotiating w/. The sox must know what's on the table, so their offer must be in line w/ the other teams. I'm not sure what the sox offer is or any other teams. But its likely the sox topped other offers, and should be willing to go up if they need to [which they should]. But as happened in the Vizquel deal, the sox put their best offer on the table and got beat [like showing all their cards]. KW sounds like he's keeping them close to his vest, and has some leeway to go up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beck72 Posted January 5, 2005 Author Share Posted January 5, 2005 QUOTE(raff @ Jan 5, 2005 -> 12:49 AM) great post beck. you make many good points. he will bring a central championship to the south side I wouldn't go that far. But he should help in more ways than one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beck72 Posted January 5, 2005 Author Share Posted January 5, 2005 QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Jan 5, 2005 -> 12:02 AM) I think what AJ brings is a guy who was a major part of winning baseball teams. I think its really important when adding to a team, you add at least a few guys who have experience winning. So many times guys are picked up from cellar dwellar teams, and although they have nice obp's , era's etc. they haven't been around a winning environment, they've been putting up numbers playing meaningless games, and really don't know how to win. A lot of players have been studs in Montreal, only to be traded and become quite average. 2 obvious exceptions are Pedro and Vlad. MLB is not Rotisserie baseball. Teams have to know how to win. Careful. You're coming very close to labeling AJ a "winner". And you'll have Jackie Hayes on your case until the day you die Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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