Keppinger to Sox 3 yr deal

[Reddy]

Will they give Morel a chance to beat out this stiff? I think we'll all be clamoring for Morel if he's healthy.

1) you are HORRIBLE at evaluating baseball players (Kep averages 30ish strikeouts per full season of at bats. That's amazing)

 

2) Keppinger is VASTLY better than Brent Morel and isn't coming off a back injury

 

[Jake]

And why not?

 

 

Given the likely cost, I'd prefer a player who has had more than one season of better than .800 OPS or more than 12 Hrs or more than 64 RBIs, especially when said player is 28 and has had several relatively unexciting seasons.

[Reddy]

Given the likely cost, I'd prefer a player who has had more than one season of better than .800 OPS or more than 12 Hrs or more than 64 RBIs, especially when said player is 28 and has had several relatively unexciting seasons.

Headley is not good. Agreed.

[Jake]

Headley is not good. Agreed.

 

I won't go that far but for the likely price, the risk that he goes back to a slightly above average player are too high for me. He'd instantly be our best 3B and would probably stay there for years... but at what cost?

[Reddy]

I won't go that far but for the likely price, the risk that he goes back to a slightly above average player are too high for me. He'd instantly be our best 3B and would probably stay there for years... but at what cost?

 

His .875 OPS last year drastically inflates his career OPS and it's still at .769

 

No, he's not awful, but he's NOT - like you said - worth 30 hr 100 rbi money by a LONG shot.

 

 

[chw42]

Given the likely cost, I'd prefer a player who has had more than one season of better than .800 OPS or more than 12 Hrs or more than 64 RBIs, especially when said player is 28 and has had several relatively unexciting seasons.

 

Petco park is the biggest killer of offensive numbers in baseball. Headley's been a good player for a long time. He just happened to improve his power dramatically last year. Headley is a 35-40 HR player in a park like the Cell.

 

Even though his OPS has been stuck around the mid to high 700s for most of his career, his career wRC+ is 116, 16% above league average. That's how much Petco screws with his stats. Headley's wOBA away from Petco is .364 vs. .316 at Petco (.836 vs. 695 in terms of OPS).

 

You have yourself a classic Adrian Beltre in Seattle situation. Once Beltran got out of Safeco, his offensive numbers exploded. The good thing about Headley is that he's been good (last year) in a horrible hitter's park like Petco. Beltre never put up Headley's numbers from last year while with the M's.

 

Chase Headley is a very good hitter and a very good defender. He's worth the hype.

Edited December 6, 2012 by chw42

[Reddy]

Petco park is the biggest killer of offensive numbers in baseball. Headley's been a good player for a long time. He just happened to improve his power dramatically last year. Headley is a 35-40 HR player in a park like the Cell.

 

Even though his OPS has been stuck around the mid to high 700s for most of his career, his career wRC+ is 116, 16% above league average. That's how much Petco screws with his stats. Headley's wOBA away from Petco is .364 vs. .316 at Petco (.836 vs. 695 in terms of OPS).

 

You have yourself a classic Adrian Beltre in Seattle situation. Once Beltran got out of Safeco, his offensive numbers exploded. The good thing about Headley is that he's been good (last year) in a horrible hitter's park like Petco. Beltre never put up Headley's numbers from last year while with the M's.

 

Chase Headley is a very good hitter and a very good defender. He's worth the hype.

where have i heard that before?

 

kidding aside though - good insight. i may take a closer look and re-evaluate... i DONT think 30 hr is his norm by ANY stretch, and the OBP has only been good in the last couple years... but we'll see. still not sure i'd risk the $$

[Vance Law]

Considering Youk's last 3 seasons with injuries, the fact that Keppinger was clearly the better player last year, and the fact that Youk will command a salary 3 times higher, this was the smart move.

[chw42]

where have i heard that before?

 

kidding aside though - good insight. i may take a closer look and re-evaluate... i DONT think 30 hr is his norm by ANY stretch, and the OBP has only been good in the last couple years... but we'll see. still not sure i'd risk the $$

 

People said Teahen would hit 40 home runs at the Cell? I sure as hell didn't. I thought he could hit 20. 25 at most.

[greg775]

Two years for Grabe to move through the ranks. I like the Kepplinger deal, we saw a fair bit of him in the Florida market. A solid player. Glad he is older!

 

If Grabe can come close to what he did in his debut season at subsequent levels you guys will learn his name.

OPS over 1.000 against lefty's and over .900 against righty's.

 

He has played 3rd his whole life, with stints at short.

 

Power will be there by ST.

Who is Grabe? What round did we get him in? Is he a future star? Ventura-ish or ?

 

 

1) you are HORRIBLE at evaluating baseball players (Kep averages 30ish strikeouts per full season of at bats. That's amazing)

 

2) Keppinger is VASTLY better than Brent Morel and isn't coming off a back injury

 

Sorry to offend, but I studied his stats and I didn't see much pop in his bat for a corner infielder. I saw a guy I would not want on my fantasy team. He'd be great as a younger version of Old-mar. It's just my opinion. Don't get worked up. I'll support him on Opening Day. I just don't like him being the Sox starting third baseman. Don't think he deserves that role.

[maggsmaggs]

Two years for Grabe to move through the ranks. I like the Kepplinger deal, we saw a fair bit of him in the Florida market. A solid player. Glad he is older!

 

If Grabe can come close to what he did in his debut season at subsequent levels you guys will learn his name.

OPS over 1.000 against lefty's and over .900 against righty's.

 

He has played 3rd his whole life, with stints at short.

 

Power will be there by ST.

Grabe was a 23-year-old dominating Rookie Ball. His sick numbers were also in a very small sample size.

 

I would love Grabe to explode as a prospect, but let's be realistic here. He needs to demonstrate solid statistics at an age-appropriate level over a full season before he would even crack the Sox's top-30 prospect list, let alone be considered a future starter.

Edited December 6, 2012 by maggsmaggs

[Princess Dye]

To clarify (if i'm not mistaken) floridafan is Grabe's father

 

 

hence his comment about Keppinger "glad he's old" heh

Edited December 6, 2012 by Jose Paniagua

[witesoxfan]

Sorry to offend, but I studied his stats and I didn't see much pop in his bat for a corner infielder. I saw a guy I would not want on my fantasy team. He'd be great as a younger version of Old-mar. It's just my opinion. Don't get worked up. I'll support him on Opening Day. I just don't like him being the Sox starting third baseman. Don't think he deserves that role.

 

Quite frankly, I don't give a s*** if you want him on your fantasy team. I don't want him on mine either, but that doesn't make him a bad player. He has enough pop, he'll punch a few over the fence and into the gaps, but he wasn't brought in to hit home runs - he was brought in to keep the lineup moving and to put the ball in play. And at $4 million a year, if he falls off a bit, he's going to be affordable enough that they can use him in a utility role down the road.

 

This also allows the Sox to allocate some resources elsewhere too. Youkilis is probably going to end up $8+ mill or so on a multi year contract and he actually had a worse season last year than Keppinger. I don't envision Keppinger maintaining that this year, but he's not going to be a bad player.

 

Oh, and the Sox had an outstanding offer out to Eric Chavez too and he simply wanted to play out west. I can't blame the guy - he's from California and probably lives out there.

[greg775]

Why has chavez played in so few games the past few years?

[Balta1701]

Why has chavez played in so few games the past few years?

Because his back is much more likely to give out than Morel's.

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

I predict we will all be pleasantly surprised with Kep. He'll hit behind runners ,sacrifice, hit for a decent average and hit close to 10 HR's and play decent D. He was certainly the best choice out there which doesn't say much for what was out there. In the 2001 College World Series, he hit a two-run home run off Mark Prior.

 

A 3 year deal was a must to outbid the other teams involved. His relationship with Buddy Bell while in KC helped.

 

Whoever signs Youk will be disappointed.

 

I also expect Hahn to be in on a blockbuster 3 way deal.

Edited December 6, 2012 by CaliSoxFanViaSWside

[hogan873]

I predict we will all be pleasantly surprised with Kep. He'll hit behind runners ,sacrifice, hit for a decent average and hit close to 10 HR's and play decent D. He was certainly the best choice out there which doesn't say much for what was out there. In the 2001 College World Series, he hit a two-run home run off Mark Prior.

 

A 3 year deal was a must to outbid the other teams involved. His relationship with Buddy Bell while in KC helped.

 

Whoever signs Youk will be disappointed.

 

I also expect Hahn to be in on a blockbuster 3 way deal.

I think he's going to get 8 figures for at least two years. That's an overpay for sure. He's really starting to show his age, and his hard play is catching up to him. The more I think about it, the more I like the Keppinger deal.

[LittleHurt05]

Given the likely cost, I'd prefer a player who has had more than one season of better than .800 OPS or more than 12 Hrs or more than 64 RBIs, especially when said player is 28 and has had several relatively unexciting seasons.

 

 

He's had a .800 OPS or higher on the road in 4 of the last 5 seasons. Petco has killed his overall numbers. I wouldn't go as far to predict 35-40 homers at the Cell, but he can definitely be a top 5 or 7 3rd baseman in the league offensively if he leaves that park.

[SoxnGiants]

I'm sure it was mentioned earlier, but I must have missed it. Contract total is $12 over the 3 years.

 

[southsider2k5]

I predict we will all be pleasantly surprised with Kep. He'll hit behind runners ,sacrifice, hit for a decent average and hit close to 10 HR's and play decent D. He was certainly the best choice out there which doesn't say much for what was out there. In the 2001 College World Series, he hit a two-run home run off Mark Prior.

 

A 3 year deal was a must to outbid the other teams involved. His relationship with Buddy Bell while in KC helped.

 

Whoever signs Youk will be disappointed.

 

I also expect Hahn to be in on a blockbuster 3 way deal.

 

I'm sure most of Soxtalk will hate him soon enough because he isn't the classic home run hitting 3B. My hope is that Morel is really healthy, can unlearn all of the bad habits he picked up trying to save his back, and can actually become a decent starter. Keppinger would be a platoon/super-sub type of guy, which would really be ideal for this team.

[SoxAce]

I'm sure most of Soxtalk will hate him soon enough because he isn't the classic home run hitting 3B. My hope is that Morel is really healthy, can unlearn all of the bad habits he picked up trying to save his back, and can actually become a decent starter. Keppinger would be a platoon/super-sub type of guy, which would really be ideal for this team.

 

I can already envision the offensive Juan Pierre, just at 3B comparisons. (I will admit though, I'm not a big fan of Kep like others here, but he is a solid super sub, when used correctly)

[witesoxfan]

So long as people accept Keppinger for what he is - a good, solid contact hitter - I don't think too many people are going to be upset with him. This isn't a Darin Erstad (brought in under false pretenses and was terrible), Mark Kotsay (brought in to be a DH when a far superior option was available at the same or lesser price), or Juan Pierre (slap singles hitter getting too much money that the Sox actually traded players away for) situation. Keppinger's deal is very fair, I believe Ventura will utilize him properly depending upon his production throughout the life of his contract, and I have no expectations beyond a decent OBP and making a lot of contact.

[hogan873]

I'm sure most of Soxtalk will hate him soon enough because he isn't the classic home run hitting 3B. My hope is that Morel is really healthy, can unlearn all of the bad habits he picked up trying to save his back, and can actually become a decent starter. Keppinger would be a platoon/super-sub type of guy, which would really be ideal for this team.

I doubt this. Anyone can look at his stats and see what he is. He's not a power hitter. He's a decent hitter who rarely strikes out. If the guy ends up being hated, it won't be because he doesn't hit homeruns. If he starts off the season hitting .200 and committing a bunch of errors at third, then we might see the hate.

 

If Keppinger hits like he has over his career (not necessarily what he did last year), he could be a .280 hitter with 8-10 HRs and 40-50 RBIs. I'll take that in a third baseman and 2-hole hitter.

[Dick Allen]

Maybe this guy is like Wimpy and blooming late. If he hits anywhere near what he did in 2012, I'm sure everyone will be happy. If he plays like a guy who gets non tendered, like he was in 2011, I'm sure he will be hated.

[southsider2k5]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseb...0,6201916.story

 

By Mark Gonzales Tribune reporter

 

6:45 p.m. CST, December 5, 2012

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Jeff Keppinger's three-year, $12 million contract with the Chicago White Sox might have stunned some baseball observers.

 

But Joe Maddon, Keppinger's manager with Tampa Bay last season gushed about the talents of the Sox's new third baseman.

 

"Kep is the proverbial consummate professional," Maddon told the Tribune before leaving the Opryland Hotel, site of the Winter Meetings. "He just knows how to hit. He’s never in trouble at the plate. I don’t care who is pitching. He is very confident offensive player."

 

But that was just part of Maddon's praise for Keppinger, who batted .325 for the Rays and is a contact hitter that the Sox sorely needed to replace Kevin Youkilis.

 

"The thing about Kep, people don’t know how good he is on defense," Maddon said. "He played a great third base and first base for us. He can play second.

 

"Beyond that, he was good in the clubhouse. His teammates are going to love him. He hates losing. He hates losing. He’s very big for us last year. He fits in every well in any clubhouse. I’m sure he’s going to do very well there."