why not go for Brett lawrie?

[Knackattack]

Reading that he is available. He shouldn't cost much and he swatted 16 homers last year, and prior to last year he has been a defensive wizard at 3rd. Just drunken spitballing on turkey day

[Bigsoxhurt35]

Because he's a .6 WAR compared to 2.2 Valencia. I'd take Valencia over him.

 

That said, I'm not dipping into the farm for either.

Edited November 26, 2015 by SouthSideSale

[Bob Sacamano]

Because he's a .6 WAR compared to 2.2 Valencia. I'd take Valencia over him.

 

That said, I'm not dipping into the farm for either.

 

Yeah I want either but not at too high a cost. Articles I've read had mentioned they'd been calls on Lawrie from AL teams. Would have to imagine we're one.

[Bigsoxhurt35]

Yeah I want either but not at too high a cost. Articles I've read had mentioned they'd been calls on Lawrie from AL teams. Would have to imagine we're one.

I mean a swap of Beck or Saladino I'd think about it at least. He just doesn't warrant a package of even low potential prospects.

[GGajewski18]

I mean a swap of Beck or Saladino I'd think about it at least. He just doesn't warrant a package of even low potential prospects.

 

I agree. I think a Beck and Wheeler package could get it done. Remember, he also plays 2B as well.

[ChiSoxFanMike]

This is a guy that the Sox should ABSOLUTELY go after.

 

Even if he had an identical season in 2016 as he did last year, he'd be way better than any 3rd baseman the Sox currently have.

 

Not to mention that he's only 26 years old.

Edited November 26, 2015 by ChiSoxFanMike

[Kyyle23]

Because he's a .6 WAR compared to 2.2 Valencia. I'd take Valencia over him.

 

That said, I'm not dipping into the farm for either.

 

Yea, but Valencia has almost exclusively hit against lefties since his rookie year because he has been so bad against righties. He is only a platoon, you are still looking for a 3b

 

And that is not me endorsing Lawrie, that guy is never healthy

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

Yea, but Valencia has almost exclusively hit against lefties since his rookie year because he has been so bad against righties. He is only a platoon, you are still looking for a 3b

 

And that is not me endorsing Lawrie, that guy is never healthy

 

He was pretty healthy last year for the 1st time in a while and the Sox have a track record of keeping players healthier than average. I think he is just the type of guy the Sox are targeting more so than Valencia who is 5 years older.

 

His K rate was way up , maybe swinging for the fences too much ,and his OBP sucks but I like he's an AL player. Good candidate for a bounce back ( way more so than LaRoche since I see his name being bandied about for a rebound). Maybe if he sticks at 3rd and plays less 2nd base his defense might also rebound.

 

This is precisely who the Sox should be targeting for 2016. Micah Johnson for Lawrie straight up.

Edited November 26, 2015 by CaliSoxFanViaSWside

[Whisox05]

Yea, but Valencia has almost exclusively hit against lefties since his rookie year because he has been so bad against righties. He is only a platoon, you are still looking for a 3b

 

And that is not me endorsing Lawrie, that guy is never healthy

 

Valencia splits are pretty good against righties last year. Had about 70 more at bats against righties

[spiderman]

There's probably a decent chance the Sox do acquire one of these two guys. They have a gaping hole at 3B that isn't going to be filled internally. I would be shocked if they weren't at least exploring a deal here. I don't know that the free agent market is going to solve any problems either especially if they have to overpay on a 3 or 4 year deal to land anyone. Lawrie's age is intriguing, but he hasn't been that good. That's the issue with finding a potential solution like him. They are probably better with him than not, and they aren't going to have a perfect lineup, but if they acquire Lawrie, I'm ok with it, but they still need to find some middle of the lineup hitter as well.

[Whisox05]

He was pretty healthy last year for the 1st time in a while and the Sox have a track record of keeping players healthier than average. I think he is just the type of guy the Sox are targeting more so than Valencia who is 5 years older.

 

His K rate was way up , maybe swinging for the fences too much ,and his OBP sucks but I like he's an AL player. Good candidate for a bounce back ( way more so than LaRoche since I see his name being bandied about for a rebound). Maybe if he sticks at 3rd and plays less 2nd base his defense might also rebound.

 

This is precisely who the Sox should be targeting for 2016. Micah Johnson for Lawrie straight up.

 

Ya of course lawrie would be the guy they target cause he fits right on with their low average, chance for high power, high strikeouts and low obp. Im getting pretty tired of sox going after these type of players. If lawries power goes down with the Sox then you have another dunn/Laroche. Sox can't afford to continue to have these type of players and we know the sox can't correct the offense issue in these players

Edited November 26, 2015 by WhiteSoxLifer

[BlackSox13]

Looking at what third baseman are realistically available, Lawrie is not a bad idea as long as the cost is reasonable. I like the idea of Micah for Lawrie, not sure Oakland would but I think Oakland has a spot open at 2B? Could be a match for a trade. It might take Micah plus a low level pitching prospect which I would not object to. Someone mentioned Wheeler so maybe pair him up with Micah for Lawrie?

 

This really is a horrible year to be in the market for a 3B.

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

Ya of course lawrie would be the guy they target cause he fits right on with their low average, chance for high power, high strikeouts and low obp. Im getting pretty tired of sox going after these type of players. If lawries power goes down with the Sox then you have another dunn/Laroche. Sox can't afford to continue to have these type of players and we know the sox can't correct the offense issue in these players

 

The Sox are in no position to be targeting a better player at 3rd base. It's close to catcher as far as good ones go. Sox need a guy there who can play everyday and still has upside and is fairly cheap. That's just what you're going to get. Sorry.

[Brian]

Lawrie gets hurt a lot as well, doesn't he? Valencia last year could've been a fluke. Doesn't have a long track record of consistency.

[Vance Law]

Valencia splits are pretty good against righties last year. Had about 70 more at bats against righties

 

So he had a career year against righties at age 30 last year. He has a career .664 OPS against righties, who make up about 78% of pitchers. What's he going to do next year? Is he going to hit righties well just because we want him to? He'd be awesome if we had a platoon mate. Perhaps one Connor Gillespie is available.

[Whisox05]

The Sox are in no position to be targeting a better player at 3rd base. It's close to catcher as far as good ones go. Sox need a guy there who can play everyday and still has upside and is fairly cheap. That's just what you're going to get. Sorry.

 

They could be nce a position of targeting a better 3rd baseman if they used Quintana. The Sox have a guy who has upside and fairly cheap on avi but they cant seem to get anything better out of him. I could easily see lawrie regressing with the sox offensively

[BlackSox13]

Here's a list of the top 20 at 3B.

 

http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/batting/_/position/3b/sort/OPS

 

How many of these 3B are really available for trade and how many of them are worthy of Q?

 

I'm liking the idea of Lawrie more and more.

Edited November 26, 2015 by BlackSox13

[LDF]

Here's a list of the top 20 at 3B.

 

http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/batting/_/position/3b/sort/OPS

 

How many of these 3B are really available for trade and how many of them are worthy of Q?

 

I'm liking the idea of Lawrie more and more.

 

thanks for the link. of the top 10, the only one i can see being available is t frazier - cincy, and only b/c they may want to trade him for prospects. they already admitted to be blowing up the team.

 

i really like frazier, lawrie and d valencia who i may like the most. for me, any 3 will be a better option than freese

[GreenSox]

Reading that he is available. He shouldn't cost much and he swatted 16 homers last year, and prior to last year he has been a defensive wizard at 3rd. Just drunken spitballing on turkey day

Because he's not very good and will cost a legitimate prospect like Micah. And Oakland will do with Micah what Don Ventura will not do: play him and watch him hit.

 

And I'm sick of deals with Oakland. They never turn out well.

Edited November 27, 2015 by GreenSox

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

Because he's not very good and will cost a legitimate prospect like Micah. And Oakland will do with Micah what Don Ventura will not do: play him and watch him hit.

 

And I'm sick of deals with Oakland. They never turn out well.

 

Yea but the whole problem with Micah and many Sox is that we can't really count on him defensively. The pitchers need to know that every effort is going to be made to get better defense behind them while they incrementally build the offense. Maximize the pitching by preventing runs while also trying to build up an offense that isn't defensively challenged.

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

Here's a list of the top 20 at 3B.

 

http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/batting/_/position/3b/sort/OPS

 

How many of these 3B are really available for trade and how many of them are worthy of Q?

 

I'm liking the idea of Lawrie more and more.

 

People seem to be in a big hurry to deal Q but I'm sure the Sox want to avoid that if they can. They also need to realize that there just aren't enough good 3rd basemen to go around without a big contract attached . If Lawrie can rebound to a 1.5 WAR which is entirely possible as projected by Steamer , getting him ends up being a decent move if the Sox can avoid giving up more talent than he's worth .

 

For those who think Lawrie sucks there will probably be at least 3 or 4 teams who want him which just proves the lack of quality depth at the position league wide.

Edited November 27, 2015 by CaliSoxFanViaSWside

[TheFutureIsNear]

I too would rather get Valencia for cheap. I's bet Billy Beane has wet dreams at night about turning a waiver claim into prospects so I'm sure he's available. Wonder if they would do something like Beck and an A ball prospect like Wheeler, Earley, or Zach Thompson?

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

Here's a list of the top 20 at 3B.

 

http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/batting/_/position/3b/sort/OPS

 

How many of these 3B are really available for trade and how many of them are worthy of Q?

 

I'm liking the idea of Lawrie more and more.

 

Also should be pointed out it looks like ESPN used the Baseball reference WAR which had Lawrie at a 1.9 WAR but there is a BIG discrepancy between the Fangraphs WAR (0.6) and Baseball Reference. Since I'm still getting used to looking at these kind of stats I know I must be missing something because even comparing his previous years WAR on both sights there are far different numbers.

 

Anyone want to help me out here ?

[BlackSox13]

thanks for the link. of the top 10, the only one i can see being available is t frazier - cincy, and only b/c they may want to trade him for prospects. they already admitted to be blowing up the team.

 

i really like frazier, lawrie and d valencia who i may like the most. for me, any 3 will be a better option than freese

Agreed. The only players that look like they could be realistically available, imo, are Frazier/Lawrie/Prado/Longoria/Plouffe/Sandoval. None of those 3B are worth Q so the idea of trading Q for a 3B becomes pointless. Minny wants to try Sano in LF to likely try and hold on to Plouffe, so it seems. Cinci wants prospects but at what cost to the Sox? If Frazier doesn't cost the Sox any top prospects then I'd be fine with that but I'm thinking Cinci can do better than what he Sox would be willing to offer. I wouldn't touch the contracts of Longoria or Sandoval. That pretty much leaves us with Prado, Lawrie and Valencia.

 

I'm fine with any of those three but there's a few other points worth noting Prado is 32 and earns 11M in '16 with 3M being paid by the Yanks and is a FA after '16. Valencia comes with two years of control but is already 31. Lawrie is going to be 26 in January, comes with two years of control and due to his youth/lack of boras for an agent presents the Sox with a core type player and potential log term solution to a position that has been dormant since Creedy.

 

The more I think about it, the more sense trading for Lawrie makes. He won't cost top prospects and the A's just might be interested in a player like Micah to play 2B. f*** t, I'm all for Lawrie.

 

People seem to be in a big hurry to deal Q but I'm sure the Sox want to avoid that if they can. They also need to realize that there just aren't enough good 3rd basemen to go around without a big contract attached . If Lawrie can rebound to a 1.5 WAR which is entirely possible as projected by Steamer , getting him ends up being a decent move if the Sox can avoid giving up more talent than he's worth .

 

For those who think Lawrie sucks there will probably be at least 3 or 4 teams who want him which just proves the lack of quality depth at the position league wide.

Agreed with all of this. At 26, its very much possible Lawrie can turn it around and imo, become a potential long term solution at 3B. His age fits the "core" mold the Sox are looking for at a position the Sox desperately need help at.

 

Like the Sox, I'm in no hurry to trade Q and it sure seems to me like there aren't any available 3B worth trading Q for anyway. The pickings are slim for 3B and beggers can't be choosers.

Edited November 27, 2015 by BlackSox13

[BlackSox13]

Also should be pointed out it looks like ESPN used the Baseball reference WAR which had Lawrie at a 1.9 WAR but there is a BIG discrepancy between the Fangraphs WAR (0.6) and Baseball Reference. Since I'm still getting used to looking at these kind of stats I know I must be missing something because even comparing his previous years WAR on both sights there are far different numbers.

 

Anyone want to help me out here ?

If I remember right, Balta explained to me the difference was that the WAR BR shows is the actual WAR based on performance whereas the Fangraphs WAR takes other things into consideration so their WAR is what should have been and not what it actually was Example, a pitchers WAR might be higher on fangraphs due to fangraphs taking into account the bad defense played behind him but BR's WAR are the actual results without the other factors coming into play. To me the difference is similar to Runs and Earned Runs stats.