Kimmi

Good news on Farrell - his cancer is in remission. He is gaining his strength back and fully expects to be ready to go by spring training.

I was reading earlier (from Heyman) that the Sox deem Moncada, Benintendi, and Espinoza as untouchable.

There is also always the possibility of a 3 team trade. Maybe we don't match up with the Mets one on one, but bring in a 3rd team, and that opens up a whole new slew of possibilities. Dombrowski and other GMs are inquiring about trades that aren't even on our radar.

I posted about not hammering Dombrowski if he signs Price and the contract goes bad. I won't hammer him over a bad contract if I see the rationale behind the contract, which I do with Price. There's a difference between signing a bad contract or two, and revamping the entire philosophy and framework of the organization. Theo's and Ben's philosophy is one that I strongly agree with because it is absolutely the right way to build a successful franchise. If Dombrowski does a 180 on the team's philosphy, I will be critical.

Ben's philosophy was to build a strong franchise through building a strong farm, then supplementing the home grown players through free agency. You may not agree with the players that he chose to sign in free agency, but he stuck with his long term plan of prioritizing the farm system. The team is now in great shape for several years to come. Spot on long term philosophy.

I didn't think it was strange at all. I was surprised by it, but I didn't think it was strange. Offense was a weakness in 2014. Hitting was at a premium that offseason. The Sox signed two of the best offensive free agents (or what was supposed to be the best) to address their weakness from the previous season.

That's a very diplomatic way to look at it, so Royals it is! However, I'm pulling for the Jays to win tonight, just so there will be baseball tomorrow night.

Yankees fans are apparently now Mets fans, hence the need to pull for the AL team.

Just say no to Chris Davis. Our position players are more or less good to go.

And yet the Cubs have Arrieta and Lester, both of whom were beat in that series.

That said, if Dombrowski goes all out with a 'win now at any cost' approach and mortgages the future of this team for many years to come, I will be critical of him. Theo and Ben have the absolute right philosophy when it comes to building a franchise. Dombrowski should not take a 180 on that philosophy.

I don't know what is so difficult about the idea of being happy as a fan if the Sox sign a good player even though you might not like the contract. If the decision were up to me, I would not sign Price for the $200 mil contract that he is likely to get. Even though I usually prefer not having to give up prospects, this is a case where I think trading for a younger, cost-controlled pitcher would be the better option, as I've stated before. Regardless, if Dombrowski does sign Price, I will be happy as a fan. I know that the team needs pitching, and I know that Price will make the team better, at least at the front end of the contract. Why would I not be happy about that? If the contract goes bad, I will not hammer Dombrowski. I did not like Pablo's contract, but I was happy to have him on the team. That deal looks horrible right now. Have I hammered either Ben or Pablo for that signing? I'm pretty sure I'm the only one here who is still defending that signing, even though I didn't like the contract and I preferred Headley over Pablo. That's the difference between you and me. I can understand and accept the rationale behind moves even if I don't agree with them. And just because they turn out bad, it doesn't mean that it was the wrong thing to do at the time it was done.

LOL I really didn't have anything against the Mets, but now I'm going to have to pull for whoever the AL team is.

The Cubs are no joke, and they are set up to be good for several years. The adage about the playoffs being a crapshoot is mostly true. It's not always the best team that wins, but rather the team that is playing the best ball at the time. I think the Cubs' inexperience may have caught up with them at the wrong time.

No, we have no way of knowing. And as I've said before, it's quite possible that Price will pitch well for the duration of his contract. I'm not saying that the Sox should not sign him. We need a strong #1 in our rotation next year and I understand it's going to cost us. I am just stating my dislike and wariness of long contracts.

I understand the rationale behind both signings. I had no problem with Hanley's contract which, given its relatively short length, I thought was a reasonable contract. However, I have stated many times that I am not a fan of Pablo's contract, and that I thought there were better options for 3B. I understand the rationale behind signing Price. I will not be a fan of his contract if we do sign him, but I will be a fan of the player.

I was just thinking that this morning, how the Championship Series have not been all that exciting. I'd like to see both series go to at least game 6, if not the 7th game. Not likely though. Oh well, it's baseball, and baseball is better than no baseball.

I was reading some postseason pitching numbers on the Jays. Don't remember the exact numbers, but the starters' ERA was in the 7 range and the BP ERA was in the 10 range.

Well, the Jays are not going to go down quietly, at least not today. I'm hoping the Cubs can at least win 2 games and force a game 6.

The Blue Jays are in deep doo doo. OTOH, they might be thinking, 'we have the Royals right where we want them'.

I don't disagree with any of that. I am just disagreeing with the notion that he is a fool for not immediately jumping into another GM job.

It is simply not true that nothing they spend now will have a negative impact on what they do 5 years out.

This very thing could happen when Price is at the end of his contract. He would most likely remain on the team because of his guaranteed contract, and he very well could block a younger, better pitcher when that happens.

I get that everyone would rather sign Price than Hanley or Pablo. The issue is not which signing would be better. The issue is the problem with large contracts, period. Just because signing Price would make more sense to most than signing Hanley or Pablo doesn't make the risks of siging Price to a huge contract any better. Many of the young players that we currently have will be either in their last arb years or will become free agents at roughly the same time Price's contract is likely to be more of a burden than good. Those youngsters will no longer be inexpensive if they continue to perform and develop.

The Sox likely would not be strapped by one large contract. Regardless, tying up roughly 16% of payroll on one player is a lot of eggs to throw in one basket. The team loses some flexibility and options on what it can do as far as assembling a team. The money is just part of the issue. Let's say Price is making $30 mil a year and he declines quickly in the last 3 years of the contract. What do you do with him? The Sox are not going to DFA him. He would be difficult to trade. Because of the large salary, he will most likely continue to take the ball every 5th day, to the detriment of the team. And in taking the ball every 5th day, he might very well prohibit a more deserving youngster from being in the rotation.