With the latest Sox Machine Podcast episode overflowing with Manny Machado reaction, position previews and Dan Szymborsking, we shifted P.O. Sox to the blog for another week.
As always, thank you for your support.
From Andrew Segall:
I’m really trying to find anything to get excited about for this upcoming season. Beyond Eloy’s (eventual) promotion, I can only come up with hoping for midseason promotions from Cease and/or Dunning, Zavala, Adolfo, Basabe, etc. what, if anything, are you excited about for this season?
From VaChisox:
My question is similar to Andrew Segall's. After this dismal offseason that seemed to take the rebuild a step backwards and raises serious questions about the team's commitment to spending market rates for top talent, what, if anything, gives you hope that this rebuild will succeed?
That's the problem with limping from a 100-loss season into another rebuilding season without any major material changes -- the things/players that might be worth getting excited about may also be the greatest source of dread. Ideally, Yoan Moncada and Lucas Giolito consolidated their greatest struggles into one neat/ugly box in 2018, and we'll be watching them tap into their talent more regularly in 2019. The same can be said for all the injuries on the farm last year, when the biggest question was not "When is he going to get promoted?" but "How long is he goin to be out?" One hopes the Sox can't suffer that kind of luck again, although Luis Basabe breaking his hamate bone, so that doesn't exactly foreshadow fun.
It doesn't take a Pollyanna to imagine the White Sox having some of the fun they were deprived of last year, even though the failed pursuit of Manny Machado casts a pall over everything for now. However, if the first wave of the rebuild nets only Reynaldo Lopez and an injured Michael Kopech for above-average contributors, and the Sox aren't willing to spend at the top of the market, the road ahead looks far tougher to navigate.
As Josh mentioned on the podcast, the prevailing hope -- absent all other encouraging signs -- is that the White Sox traded too much talent and drafted too high for this to fail entirely. Maybe the window will take longer to arrive and close abruptly short, but given how weak the AL Central is, not everything needs to go right.
From BamaSox:
Will any Sox pitcher win 12 games in 2019? Which of our prospects will we expect to see start the year in Birmingham (I'm 90 minutes away and hope to catch a few games this year)? Also, the show about the Black Sox was fantastic podcasting. Really enjoyed it.
Lucas Giolito won 10 games despite a 6.13 ERA last season, so it seems like somebody could stumble into 12 with a little more competence all around. Then again, Giolito is the only one with a double-digit win total in any of the last two seasons, and if Ivan Nova and Ervin Santana are approaching that kind of effectiveness, they seem more likely to be dealt, which limits the pool of contenders. If I had to guess, let's say Reynaldo Lopez gets to 12 wins, and nobody else gets to 10.
Birmingham's roster will get all the benefits of the Winston-Salem logjam, in that you're pretty much guaranteed to see three interesting outfielders no matter what day you show up. Even with Basabe out, there are enough prospects to go around -- Luis Gonzalez, Blake Rutherford, Micker Adolfo, maybe Luis Robert, although I'd rather see him get up to speed in Winston-Salem. I'd also go with a more conservative season-starting assignment for Nick Madrigal, but if the Sox are big believers, he might end up in Birmingham come April.
From BeachPig:
What do you think about going after Rendon next year instead of Arenado. Rendon is a year older, but will cost considerably less and has a consistent 4+/yr WAR going. Also going after Goldschmidt, bringing him in to take over at 1B for Abreu. You could consider resigning Abreu to play DH and PT 1B when Goldy needs to be spelled. It may ease the physical burden on Jose. Thoughts?
I like Rendon, and think it's in the White Sox' interest to pursue both him and Arenado with all earnestness (and Jerry Reinsdorf with renewed earnestness). As for Goldschmidt, I'd rather have him or Abreu, not both. That's just a lot of resources to sink into the same position, even if they both can play every day. Hopefully Abreu makes a great argument for retainining him as the 1A 1B.
From Asinwreck:
Since Jerry Reinsdorf is one of the youngest members of the board of directors, who do you think will be the next managing partner of the White Sox?
Based on this article from 2013, it seems like the stake could be handed down. It also cites Andrew Berlin as a potential managing partner, but he took his money and went to the Cubs in 2015, so that's probably old speculation unless he decides to flip sides to get more of a stake in decision-making.
The 2005 World Series ring Berlin received when he become a limited White Sox partner remains in a safe; and he has shelved the ambition he once had to buy the team from Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf. The type of hands-on, energetic owner a sleepy Sox franchise needs, Berlin made unsuccessful overtures to Reinsdorf in 2009 and again in 2012.
"When Jerry was unwilling to sell, I respected that completely,'' Berlin said. "It's an iconic franchise. It's a beautiful stadium to go to. I would have had a lot of fun if the timing had been different.''
From C M:
Do you think fans' disappointment over the dismal offseason will have any impact at all on the Sox front office? Twitter is not necessarily representative of the broader public, but to use that as a metric, there seem to be a lot of angry fans out there. Relatedly, what is, do you think, the best way to get through to the organization--boycott? Angry emails? Clever signs brought to games? Or, are Williams, Hahn, Reinsdorf, etc just ignoring all of it, and nothing we do will impact a dang thing.
Sometimes I think the White Sox are content to be ignored as long as the franchise keeps gaining value, at least in terms of media. They might prioritize producing an increasing share of content about them, and are biding their time for the other outlets to give up or fold.
There is a competitive spirit somewhere in there. Otherwise, they wouldn't try adding guys like Everett Teaford and Matt Lisle to reconsider developmental approaches, or more R&D types to their front office. There are changes despite Reinsdorf's refusal to consider a greater overhaul to the front office, and we have to hope they're enough.
Until then? Well, attendance and TV ratings are already as low as they're going to get, so good luck telling fresh discontentment from the lingering kind. Direct correspondence is probably the best way to go for the time being, as it doesn't cost money. Just be kind to your ticket reps if you have one.
From Mark Hope:
Five years ago the Fire were in a somewhat similar position: they had just missed out on a big time FA, fans felt generally neglected by the front office, and the team had not seen success in years. Some Fire bloggers raised the question ‘When do you raise the pirate flag?’ (ie: should we abandon the team, either in the short term or for good?) When should Sox fans consider unfurling the skull and crossbones? I’ll note in the five years since that blog I believe the Fire have made the playoffs once and were summarily bounced out after one match.
Well, as I mentioned with the attendance and TV ratings, I think a lot of fans have already checked out. The empty seats say more than any collective action can, and collective action costs time and money that's probably better directed elsewhere. I think an MLB franchise can coast more than an MLS franchise, as its revenues are coming from all sorts of different directions and are already an institution, in both the unofficial and publicly funded sense.
I'd just say to reclaim your summer for however you want to use it. The older I get, the less I'm bothered by bandwagon or casual fans, especially when a team is unwilling to improve the product. To provide my own personal example, it probably costs me $200+ to see a Sox game at Yankee Stadium when including travel costs. That series is in April this year, but I found a round-trip flight to Norway for $268 around the same time, so I'm choosing that. If Eloy's not up (and he probably won't be), what am I missing?
I don't blame anybody for choosing more fulfilling uses of their time and money, even if it's better for me personally if more people are super-involved with the White Sox. Then again, maybe that's an angle I can use while passing the hat. If people want to pay me to watch and think about the White Sox for them, everybody benefits!
