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Twins out, Red Sox in on Pierzynski


brian310

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QUOTE (SoxAce @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 07:29 AM)
Never would have thought Boston would sign him.. not because of the clubhouse "issues" but because of their own traditional philosophy with hitters.

 

AJ is still a good hitting catcher and he makes the most sense on a contender. With that short RF, he could be back to 20+ homers again.

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QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 08:15 AM)
This is great news. No idea why you guys wanted to settle for a one year stopgap before the Winter Meetings even start. To me, that is the much "weirder" part of the fanbase.

 

Yes. He was a fan favorite, but bringing him back would have been a move looking backwards. The Sox need to find a catcher that they can play for the next 5-10 years. Bringing back Pierzynski gives them, at the very most, 2 years, and you end up doing it 1 year at a time. It's just not smart business.

 

I love AJ and have a deep appreciation for what he brought to the franchise for 8 years, but he was just not a viable solution looking forward.

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QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 08:19 AM)
Yes. He was a fan favorite, but bringing him back would have been a move looking backwards. The Sox need to find a catcher that they can play for the next 5-10 years. Bringing back Pierzynski gives them, at the very most, 2 years, and you end up doing it 1 year at a time. It's just not smart business.

 

I love AJ and have a deep appreciation for what he brought to the franchise for 8 years, but he was just not a viable solution looking forward.

Not a lot of teams have a guy they can say with any confidence will be their catcher the next 5-10 years. You are lucky if you get a guy for 3 or 4.

Edited by Dick Allen
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QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 09:21 AM)
Not a lot of teams have a guy they can say with any confidence will be their catcher the next 5-10 years. You are lucky if you get a guy for 3 or 4.

But the only reason why you should consider a guy who would be your starter for the next 1-2 is if on paper you have a team that is competitive for that first year going in to the season.

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QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 02:14 PM)
Yes, because it's imperative that the Sox win 78 games this season.

No one ever claimed he would put us over the hump....

 

 

 

An old, lefty stop gap catcher that you can potentially pawn off for a piece is just what the doctor ordered for this team. A lot better than giving Salty 4 years or whatever he will get IMO.

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QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 08:21 AM)
Not a lot of teams have a guy they can say with any confidence will be their catcher the next 5-10 years. You are lucky if you get a guy for 3 or 4.

 

The point is that you are looking for a long term solution. You are discussing semantics, which, ok, I guess.

 

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 08:35 AM)
No one ever claimed he would put us over the hump....

 

 

 

An old, lefty stop gap catcher that you can potentially pawn off for a piece is just what the doctor ordered for this team. A lot better than giving Salty 4 years or whatever he will get IMO.

 

You would bring in AJ Pierzynski only to deal him at the deadline. For what he gave this franchise, I think that's a huge slap in the face. It would also take quite a time convincing him to come in using that pitch.

 

More likely is that AJ never had any interest in re-signing with the Sox, regardless of their interest level (which was still probably nil)

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QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 08:43 AM)
The point is that you are looking for a long term solution. You are discussing semantics, which, ok, I guess.

 

 

 

You would bring in AJ Pierzynski only to deal him at the deadline. For what he gave this franchise, I think that's a huge slap in the face. It would also take quite a time convincing him to come in using that pitch.

 

More likely is that AJ never had any interest in re-signing with the Sox, regardless of their interest level (which was still probably nil)

The point is, unless you already have him, you aren't going to acquire a guy who is going to be your catcher for 5 to 10 years. Playing guys that don't belong in the major leagues because they are in their 20s and theoretically can still be in the major leagues in 10 years just based on age is crazy. How many teams have had the same primary catcher the last 5 years? Stopgaps are used by just about everyone.

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QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 08:47 AM)
The point is, unless you already have him, you aren't going to acquire a guy who is going to be your catcher for 5 to 10 years. Playing guys that don't belong in the major leagues because they are in their 20s and theoretically can still be in the major leagues in 10 years just based on age is crazy. How many teams have had the same primary catcher the last 5 years? Stopgaps are used by just about everyone.

 

And that could very well be what Phegley and Flowers are. They both have decent minor league track records and both failed in their first attempts as starters. That has happened in history. Bringing back AJ to a team that is going to struggle to win 80 games is an inefficient use of resources.

 

I don't mind if they bring in 3 more catchers or if they use stop gaps. The idea should still be to try and find a long term solution.

Edited by witesoxfan
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QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 02:43 PM)
The point is that you are looking for a long term solution. You are discattention ng semantics, which, ok, I guess.

 

 

 

You would bring in AJ Pierzynski only to deal him at the deadline. For what he gave this franchise, I think that's a huge slap in the face. It would also take quite a time convincing him to come in using that pitch.

 

More likely is that AJ never had any interest in re-signing with the Sox, regardless of their interest level (which was still probably nil)

Nah, you bring him in to see if you can win. If not, trade him to a contender where he will be happier. You also grab a lot of much needed media attention in the process.

 

As for where he would sign, I'm sure it's wherever the money is, like everyone else.

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QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 08:35 AM)
No one ever claimed he would put us over the hump....

 

 

 

An old, lefty stop gap catcher that you can potentially pawn off for a piece is just what the doctor ordered for this team. A lot better than giving Salty 4 years or whatever he will get IMO.

It buys you another year to look for your future C, as far as I am concerned.

 

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QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 10:00 AM)
It buys you another year to look for your future C, as far as I am concerned.

By making sure that when we go into next offseason we have exactly the same problem as we have now, Phegley and Flowers who are too good for AAA but who haven't produced in long stints in the big leagues. Except Flowers is a year more expensive.

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QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 09:12 AM)
By making sure that when we go into next offseason we have exactly the same problem as we have now, Phegley and Flowers who are too good for AAA but who haven't produced in long stints in the big leagues. Except Flowers is a year more expensive.

I don't understand. Signing a guy like AJ shows the White Sox realize neither Phegley or Flowers are cut out to be regular catchers. At least their regular catchers. They probably realize this already. Signing Flowers was a formality. It is low cost, and they can waive him in spring training and pay him pennies to go away, or trade him for someone else's hot garbage if he hasn't shown improvement. He has proven in the past to be a capable back up.

 

Chances are the Sox long-term catching question isn't going to be solved this offseason, and probably next offseason or the off season after that.

 

Sometimes you just have to buy yourself some time.

Edited by Dick Allen
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QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 09:00 AM)
It buys you another year to look for your future C, as far as I am concerned.

 

AJ is not the type that would be OK riding the pine while you were experimenting with options to be the long term solution. It is better to bring in a solid backup and give the guys in house a larger sample size to determine if they can be long term solutions. If they both fail you can go outside of the organization and find another guy to try. AJ coming in would have prevented you from being able to do that or would have caused some major locker room issues if you sign him and don't play him enough.

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QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Dec 3, 2013 -> 09:23 AM)
AJ is not the type that would be OK riding the pine while you were experimenting with options to be the long term solution. It is better to bring in a solid backup and give the guys in house a larger sample size to determine if they can be long term solutions. If they both fail you can go outside of the organization and find another guy to try. AJ coming in would have prevented you from being able to do that or would have caused some major locker room issues if you sign him and don't play him enough.

How much do you have to see to determine if a guy is a "long-term" solution? Does anyone really think Flowers or Phegley are legitimately full time catchers in the major leagues?

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