An Open Letter to the White Sox

[caulfield12]

It is way too kind to KW...though. That's the weakness.

 

There's 20 mistakes that he has made since the end of 2008 we could list. Wilder, etc. What has Buddy Bell actually done that's had a positive impact? Recommending the Mark Teahen trade and then long-term extension? How has Bell improved our minor league system? Is there ANY evidence that we can point to at all?

 

Only 3 positives. Viciedo, Humber and Santos.

Edited August 5, 2011 by caulfield12

[Jordan4life_2007]

It is way too kind to KW...though. That's the weakness.

 

There's 20 mistakes that he has made since the end of 2008 we could list. Wilder, etc. What has Buddy Bell actually done that's had a positive impact? Recommending the Mark Teahen trade and then long-term extension? How has Bell improved our minor league system? Is there ANY evidence that we can point to at all?

 

Only 3 positives. Viciedo, Humber and Santos.

 

None. Peavy was a salary dump. So I don't want to hear how Poreda helped net us a fake ace at the time. Beckham? lol. Morel? lol. Mitchell? Again, lol. Sale? Dynamite stuff. Looks like a reliever long-term. And I didn't forget about Hudson. But I don't want to become enraged.

[DirtySox]

None. Peavy was a salary dump. So I don't want to hear how Poreda helped net us a fake ace at the time. Beckham? lol. Morel? lol. Mitchell? Again, lol. Sale? Dynamite stuff. Looks like a reliever long-term. And I didn't forget about Hudson. But I don't want to become enraged.

 

I'm still not sure all blame should be dumped on Bell. Even blaming Laumann I feel is a reach. According to someone I trust, the White Sox scouting infrastructure is woefully inadequate. Couple that with an owner that is one of most stingy in draft spending and has a significant hand in early draft selections and It seems like the process is set to fail right from the start. Jerry is far too hands on in this regard according to most of the Chicago beat guys.

[Jordan4life_2007]

I'm still not sure all blame should be dumped on Bell. Even blaming Laumann I feel is a reach. According to someone I trust, the White Sox scouting infrastructure is woefully inadequate. Couple that with an owner that is one of most stingy in draft spending and has a significant hand in early draft selections and It seems like the process is set to fail right from the start. Jerry is far too hands on in this regard according to most of the Chicago beat guys.

 

You're right. It's not all on Bell. I'm just saying him in place over Laumann has generated nothing to this point.

[DirtySox]

You're right. It's not all on Bell. I'm just saying him in place over Laumann has generated nothing to this point.

 

Buddy Bell didn't replace Laumann. Laumann is the Director of Amateur Scouting and Bell is the Director of Player Development. But yes, it's hard to make an accurate assessment of how either have performed in my mind as I would argue they are very limited in their allotted resources.

[Jordan4life_2007]

Buddy Bell didn't replace Laumann. Laumann is the Director of Amateur Scouting and Bell is the Director of Player Development. But yes, it's hard to make an accurate assessment of how either have performed in my mind as I would argue they are very limited in their allotted resources.

 

s***. I meant Wilder. Too much vodka.

[Paint it Black]

No offense man, but they don't care nor are you telling them things they don't already know.

 

We're in awful Bears fans territory of buying a "Fire Lovie" billboard now. Great.

[witesoxfan]

It is way too kind to KW...though. That's the weakness.

 

There's 20 mistakes that he has made since the end of 2008 we could list. Wilder, etc. What has Buddy Bell actually done that's had a positive impact? Recommending the Mark Teahen trade and then long-term extension? How has Bell improved our minor league system? Is there ANY evidence that we can point to at all?

 

Only 3 positives. Viciedo, Humber and Santos.

 

Humber really wasn't developed by the White Sox.

 

There aren't a ton, but Hudson and Gonzalez are on there to some extent as well, and you can argue Chris Carter and Brandon Allen as well. Quite frankly, any prospects that the White Sox traded were developed to the point that they were quality enough to trade. Clayton Richard isn't the #2 starter he looked like in San Diego, but he is a solid #3-4 guy in any rotation.

 

Basically, I'd say the White Sox have produced more since Bell took over than the previous 5 years before that.

[Rowand44]

Clayton Richard isn't the #2 starter he looked like in San Diego, but he is a solid #3-4 guy in any rotation.

No he's not. He's struggling to crack most rotations in the AL.

[caulfield12]

Except Jordan Danks, Flowers (maybe he was just a product offensively of the PEDs there with the Braves, to a large extent), Mitchell (not anyone's fault)...I'll give them credit for Viciedo and Sale, but obviously Beckham's also regressed, which (of course) has zero to do with Buddy Bell.

 

Still, let's face it, we're somewhere between 28th-30th in terms of where our system sits right now. It's pretty brutal and barren.

 

In the end, we've taken a number of steps backwards from where the 2009 season started, with Birmingham as a monster franchise filled with prospects up and down that roster. I really loved to listen to those Barons games the first half before everything was torn apart.

 

The two crown jewels of this timeframe (Beckham and Sale) spent very little time in the minors at all.

 

 

So then the question becomes, what players have progressed and made themselves quality prospects? Who can we point to this year? Addison Reed, maybe. Tyler Kuhn as a fringe utility player who might or might not take Vizquel's or Lillibridge's spot someday.

 

But we don't have any of the bats (beyond Viciedo) that can do monster damage at USCF at any of the corner positions.

 

Maybe Trayce Thompson. And Saladino's seemingly an improving prospect. Escobar will never hit well enough to make much of an impact, and with our line-up as is, you can't even contemplate about giving him a starting spot anywhere on the infield.

 

Hopefully, Mitchell's last 6-8 weeks are much more indicative of his overall future. Crosses fingers.

 

 

 

24-32 at home. That should be enough for the front office to stand up and take notice alone. Where has the home field advantage that was so obvious in 2008 gone....the last three years, they might as well have been playing at Grant Park or the Brewers' stadium for all the difference it has made to the W/L percentage.

 

 

Edited August 5, 2011 by caulfield12

[soxrwhite]

I truly believe some professionalism in the mangerial position will help tremendously. What if Gardenhire,Sciosia, or Girardi had this team? I know a good manager is hard to find, but this vulgar undisciplined has been we have now has grown stale.

 

I guess ranting on Ozzie belongs on another thread, sorry just so damn frustrated.

Edited August 5, 2011 by since56

[ChiSox_Sonix]

Very good write-up. This season has just become so frustrating, disappointing and frankly, embarrassing. I've been making annual trips out to Chicago for a few days now the past few years but I seriously doubt i'm doing that again this year. I just don't know how I can justify spending that kind of money on what is being displayed right now

[Marty34]

One thing he knows for sure. Whatever our season ticket base is now, let's say 16-18,000 per game, it's going to be cut down to 7500 to open next season if Guillen, Walker, Williams, Dunn and Rios are all back.

 

It might even be down to 5,000, but the last thing he can afford to do is cut payroll by $30 million, lose Buehrle, bring in no new talent or reason for hope (other than Viciedo) and not change a a single thing operationally/strategically in terms of the direction of the franchise.

 

I don't think JR is dumb. Something has to give between now and the end of December. It simply has to.

 

The lease guarantees 2M tickets sold. The state will pick up the difference. Of course, they take a hit on concessions, parking, etc without the actually people in the stands.

[LittleHurt05]

Clayton Richard isn't the #2 starter he looked like in San Diego, but he is a solid #3-4 guy in any rotation.

 

His career ERA away from Petco Park is 5.08. Bad.

[Balta1701]

His career ERA away from Petco Park is 5.08. Bad.

His Career Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) numbers hang just above 4. Yeah, he gets benefits from Petco, but he's still a reasonable back of the rotation guy. 1.5 WAR pitcher the year we traded him, 2.3 WAR pitcher last year.

[LittleHurt05]

His Career Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) numbers hang just above 4. Yeah, he gets benefits from Petco, but he's still a reasonable back of the rotation guy. 1.5 WAR pitcher the year we traded him, 2.3 WAR pitcher last year.

 

Does WAR take into account the fact that he pitches at Petco?

[maggsmaggs]

My biggest fear about all of this comes from the first page where Rock and DA both talk about their renewal of season tickets. Next year will probably be even worse with regard to attendance. I would have to imagine the Sox see a appreciable dip in season tickets sold next year, which will be reflected in payroll, which means a team already six games under .500 might be worse. It's just the domino affect that many people here have predicted that results in the Sox being s***ty for many many years.

[Greg Hibbard]

I don't go to Sox games because ticket prices have just gotten astronomically high.

 

As a 37 year old fan who has been attending games since the early 80s, I've happily bought tickets to go see far worse than this because it was still a good, entertaining product for the price.

 

Paul Konerko, Mark Buehrle, AJ Pierzynski, some of the bullpen - that's worth paying $20 to see. It's not worth paying $100 to see.

Edited August 5, 2011 by Greg Hibbard

[RockRaines]

Hahn for GM and Ryno for manager in 2012. Thats what I would do.

[maggsmaggs]

Hahn for GM and Ryno for manager in 2012. Thats what I would do.

That is my preference, too.

 

Sadly, I cannot see JR cutting ties with both guys.

[Iwritecode]

And while I know for a fact that this organization is very professional and tremendous it is hard when you have this general perception out there and changes aren’t being made to address it.

 

 

This sentence needs a comma or something.

[Balta1701]

Does WAR take into account the fact that he pitches at Petco?

Yes. It includes ballpark adjustments and is looking at things like strikeouts, line drive rates, flyouts, quality of defense, etc. It's not perfect, but if WAR is saying that a pitcher is a 1-2 WAR pitcher, that means he'd be an option as a rotation guy if he was on the Yankees, for example.

[LittleHurt05]

Yes. It includes ballpark adjustments and is looking at things like strikeouts, line drive rates, flyouts, quality of defense, etc. It's not perfect, but if WAR is saying that a pitcher is a 1-2 WAR pitcher, that means he'd be an option as a rotation guy if he was on the Yankees, for example.

 

Interesting, I didn't realize it took into account that many factors.

 

I guess that's what the WAR projects him as, but personally I just have a hard time looking past the large discrepancy in his home/road splits. If he was put at the back end of the Yankees rotation, I'd be surprised if it didn't go badly for him IMO.

 

On a side note, he has been out since early July and will miss the whole season after shoulder surgery. We will see how well he can recover from that.

[elrockinMT]

This is my take on this situation for what it is worth:

 

I certainly understand the frustration and the letter. It is well written and lays out the situation we are in quite well. But, I am torn between wanting to lay the blame on anyone other than non-performance. I do lean towards the GM being the problem. The desire to make splashy trades and get what he thinks are impact players and then use our farm system to do that didn't work out to well. Trades were made and players let go to free agency and that saw the team lose good quality players. I specifically look at, but not limit this to the Uribe and Thome issues and even a bit farther back and the Frank Thomas issue. Look at ther trades that was made for Peavy, a battler, but injury prone and maybe on the downside of his career becasue of those injuries. The Nick Swisher deal and the lose of prospects there including Gonzalez. Team chemistry is an issue I believe is important and is an intangible when it comes to a winning ball club. We had great team players let go. The idea I guess was to win now. Appease the fans - that's us folks- and it back fired. Ozzie Guillen was left with what he had and was given by KW. Ozzie was right when quoted about the call to fire coaches: The big leagues isn't a training ground - it's about winning. You learn at the minors. That's what the minors are for. Maybe our organization led by KW used the minors as just a developing groubnd for trade bait? We need to change that and develop players who know how to play the game. We need to develop more of our own talent and then use our money to reward those that perform. We spent money, but not talent on the Rios deal. The guy must have a real fragile ego and when the going gets tough he pouts. Can't hit and his fielding also suffers. We are paying a mint for non performance. Dunn is the same, but who could have seen that coming and it might turn around if not this year certainly in 2012. The issue this year is not just one thing, but many and it took time to get where we are at. Finally caught up with us.

[Rowand44]

His Career Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) numbers hang just above 4. Yeah, he gets benefits from Petco, but he's still a reasonable back of the rotation guy. 1.5 WAR pitcher the year we traded him, 2.3 WAR pitcher last year.

Honestly, in this situation some of those stats can get thrown out the window. When your era has been over 5 the last 2 seasons in the NL away from Petco, you're just not that good.