Manny Machado will meet with the White Sox today, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today — the first of what is reported to be at least three in-person meetings with teams this week. Previous reports have indicated that Machado is slated to meet with the Yankees on Wednesday and with the Phillies on Thursday. There’d been previous talk of a fourth meeting as well, though it’s not clear at present which team that is or if that meeting will indeed take place. It’s worth mentioning again that over the weekend, ESPN’s Buster Olney reported that a “well-placed source” indicated to him that the White Sox weren’t interested in signing either Machado or Bryce Harper to a record-setting contract. Olney called Chicago’s interest “more measured and modest than frenzied.”
We’ll keep track of today’s Machado rumblings here…
- Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes in his latest notes column (subscription required) that several execs throughout the league are of the belief that the Yankees “want” to trade Miguel Andujar, which would pave the way for Machado to be the team’s long-term third baseman. Machado would be able to step into shortstop in Didi Gregorius’ absence early in the season before ultimately sliding over to third base — the better of his two defensive positions. It’s no secret that Andujar rated as one of the worst defensive players at any position in all of baseball last winter, and while Newsday’s Erik Boland wrote this weekend that the AL Rookie of the Year runner-up is already hard at work on his defense this offseason, trade rumors surrounding the 23-year-old persist. If moved, Andujar would surely net MLB-caliber help in return rather than simply further adding to the Yankees’ already enviable farm system.
Manny signing before Bryce…? Dominos starting to fall
It wouldn’t shock me to see either the Yanks or Mets sign him. Both teams could really use him. He is a difference maker for sure.
Maybe they can include a crappy attitude clause in his contract.
I’m starting to come to terms with reality… putting Machado at short would be a disaster, however. Short-term band-aid fix, not long-term solution. His defense at SS leaves much to be desired… Don’t even get me started on his two knee surgeries…
I hope this is fake news.
I honestly think he started the shortstop stuff to drive his value up. I can see him signing a two year contract for $35-$40M/season.
Two years of playing ball minus the attitude & producing would ensure a longer term contract at really big bucks.
Lmao machado is not signing a 2 year deal
Boras will use the white sox for 2 things. Either drive up the price on teams Manny wants to play for or getting the biggest contract ever out of the white sox. There is no middle ground here. If manny signs with the sox it will be the most regrettable contract ever. Try to motivate him on a sub 500 team.
Machado isn’t represented by Boras.
He played pretty well With Baltimore who has been sub 500 for a while now… pretty sure he’s signing for the money not the championship
Machado’s knee surgeries were due to the same issue in each knee during 2013 and 2014. Looking at his stats since, I don’t think they are impeding him in any way. This obviously fixed an underlying issue which was probably genetic.
2015: 162 Games Played.
2016: 157 Games Played.
2017: 156 Games Played.
2018: 162 Games Played.
How can Yankee fans, who endured one of the worst defensive shortstops of all time for 20ish years, have any concerns over Machado’s defense???
Yeah, but starting the season with Baltimore and ending the season in L.A. playing in his first world series would certainly give him a taste of winning and wanting more of it. These guys will always make loads of money but championships are harder to come by.
I’m assuming you’re speaking of Jeter. Obviously just a bitter non-Yankees fan. Jeter was excellent defensively up until the last 3 – 4 years of his career. Get a clue.
He seemed to do pretty well in Baltimore….
@Marius
They say Baltimore is a bandbox…
But I stopped listening to that criticism after saw what happened wit concerns of JD leaving
As good as Manny is, I’d rather see him go to NYY and then trade for Andujar to play 3B for CWS at a fraction of the salary. Just need a bridge to the younger talent.
So, who would NYY want in return for Andujar?
As a lifelong yankee fan, you’re so wrong. Jeter was not “excellent” defensively
Right on. It’s a Boras ploy to get other teams involved. Manny just went to the series and after the Orioles read between the lines…He doesn’t want that any more, the W Sox are a joke.
“Good” for sure.
I’d even take “Above Average”
He never had the range towards the middle that he had into the hole for his famous “jump throw”.
Excellent should be reserved for the defensive elite. Jeter wasn’t quite at that level.
You mean Derek Jeter who won five gold gloves with the Yankees???
5 gold gloves does not equal one of the worst. Sure he was not great, but he was generally middle of the pack when it came to defensive. General ratings from fangraphs show him at OK.
Saying the guy is one of the worst defensive shortstops of all time is probably wrong. Gold gloves mean your the best supposedly at that position for that particular year.
With all these stats computated and stored away, I’m sure this is a job that’s right up X’s alley.
He’s getting calculus tutoring today so you might have to wait for the results.
@bigrick
Are you related to arc89 above in this thread? Scott Boras is not Manny Machados agent.
I am a Yankees fan, and no he was not excellent. He does not rank high for shortstop defensive metrics. I am supporting he is not the worst, but definitely not excellent (based on current sabre metrics
Lol so many haters. Us yankee fans love the envy keep it coming!
I am a die hard Mets fan but I respect the Yanks
They are MUCH better
He certainly doesn’t make them a contender in 2019. There are too many other holes to fill. And would he agree to play third for the Sox? If he sticks to his preference for short, that displaces Anderson without filling another hole.
I agree, I would much rather have Andujar with CWS. The Sox have lots of OF and P prospects:
Whatever, Yankee fan.
why would he do that when he will get a 275 mil contract this year? He wont risk a short term contract when he already has bum knees.
Oh KING…How royal of you to pick on a future HOF. Go crawl back to your fav losing team and enjoy tradition.
No he won’t sign a 2 year deal but I stand by my prediction that Harper will outearn him by a longshot due to attitude and I could see Manny still holding out for 10-12 years in late January with a max 6-7 year offer on the table, maybe at a higher AAV.
I think the logical solution here lies in the David Price contract. Put in a 3rd or 4th year opt out clause and hope it’s a 3-4 year deal and he opts out again before hitting 30-31. Like Price I think whoever signs him will be stuck for the duration given the years and AAV. I know Machado will produce while his body is young, but I fear his production as his health continues to deteriorate. Harper will hustle out every fly ball and every out, so even as his body goes his heart and competitive nature will keep him solid. Machado I don’t see as having that same level of grit and determination. I think the only team that will be desperate enough to bail him out with a 10 year plus deal is the Phillies and that’s where I have him landing. Their desire to compete and willingness to be a little stupid about it as they said will drive up his value.
I think the White Sox are thinking this as well if you believe Olneys report.
Everyone knows Jeter was mediocre at short. They gave him the Gold Glove because he was so famous and Omar Vizquel moved to the NL. It’s half about defense and half about the popularity of the player and team. I mean, one year Brandon Crawford won the Gold Glove for three years in a row, yet didn’t win in 18. Could it have anything to do with Giants not being as popular?
Don’t forget, Palmiero won a Gold Glove despite playing in only 28 games in 1999.
Thought he was same difference just an act to drive up the numbers.
You can have Machado. But why? The Dodgers were already good without him. got him for half a year and barely snuck in the playoffs then also barely getting to the WS. This was all suppose to be a slam dunk by adding Manny. Well guess what. He hit a whopping .273 in regular season then when they really needed him he hit 213 in the Post season. He won’t be any kind of difference maker and you would be stuck with him like the Cabrera’s and Pujol’ses of Baseball Hell ror 10 years!!!
Dan Lozano reps Manny, not Boras.
Harper will be a Met within a month.
Dan—to avoid disappointment please start taking your meds now. Harper is not going to Flushing.
Mike
How do you know this?
Your prediction makes no sense.
I stand with Mike on this one. There’s no foundation for this deal. The Mets have Wright being paid 15 and 12 million next 2 seasons and Cespedes 29 and 29.5. If they give Manny or Harper 32-35, which is the minimum it would take to get him to consider flushing and a number Wilpon won’t spend, they would have almost $50 million tied up at 3B and a fortune in the OF. They are 99.999% out on Machado and 100% out on Harper.
Rosenthal is wearing his Bow tie too tight. He should look north and realize that though Andujars defense was rough at times, Devers was SO much worse that it made the Yankee rookie look like a gold Glover.
Rosenthal and Joel sherman should be
Limited to sitting with the bleacher creatures so that they learn to reign in their big mouths and nonsense opinions.
Anndddd…….
The Red Sox just won a championship with Devers @3B – and Nunez as his backup.
lol
3B is the least important defensive position. Andujar’s defense had little to do with the Yankees 2018 failure to get to the WS. Look to the starting pi.tching
Devers had a -5 UZR while Andujar was historically bad with a -16. He was more than 3 times as bad as Devers.
Devers is a defensive nightmare and his laughable throws to 1st are just that, laughable. But his range and ability are much, much better then Andujar.
Its comparing an apple with a bad spot to a rotten egg defensively. You don’t really want either, but in a pinch, you’ll take the apple.
Not necessarily true Samuel. As a Sox fan in Yankees territory, I see as many Yankees games as Sox games and all the news is Yankees. Andujar was absolutely awful and had one of the worst defensive seasons at 3B in my 33 year lifetime (if not the worst). There were so many doubles down that line that should have been picked. So many bad throwing decisions even when he did make a nice play. I completely understand the desire to upgrade at 3B defensively. I can deal with Devers. Andujar, his defense gave back 16 of the runs he produced and that might be an underestimate in many Yankees fans eyes. Machado would raise every pitcher’s ERA/WHIP as significantly as any move you could ever make around the diamond, maybe more.
That’s because Bryce is overrated and not deserving of the money he thinks he is…. with that said, I would love my favorite team to sign him as he plays hard every night.
No he doesn’t. He was benched for not hustling.
Mack… And choked out.
Haha great point Joe. I forgot about that one.
However, I’ll give Bryce a pass on doing these things at 22. Manny is 26 and should be further along from an attitude standpoint. Bryce does have some swagger in his game, but more often then not, Harper plays with his heart on his sleeve. Its impossible to miss.
Bryce grew up a bit the last few years.
Agreed, manny signs first. After his tours this week he will probably make his choice
I don’t think so. 2 of the 4 teams interested are likely doing due diligence at this point (the Yankees and White Sox). The Yankees are reluctant to give a record setting deal out period and the White Sox have said directly they will not give Machado that kind of money. If he signs, I think it will be Philly bidding against itself at a high level, maybe a mystery team.
Harper’s market, I think, will develop more quickly. But he will wait for Machado to sign and want more, I think.
So yes, Machado will sign first, but I could see it being January 20-30th with Harper signing right behind him when someone misses out on Machado. If these teams are smart, and these are 3 great organizations we are talking about with a lot of resources, they will all hold out around 6-7 200-220 mil for Machado and let the market come to them. I don’t see anyone but the Phillies being primed to just “be a little stupid about it” as the front office said.
So clearly Harper isn’t going to the Yankees
Mystery Team!
Why is that “clearly”?
If the Yankees signed Machado to go along with Stanton and Judge, man that team would be loaded and exciting to watch!
I wish the Giants had some players at that level. Come on Zaidi!
Bryce Harper — the “generational talent” nobody wants. There are no obvious suitors except maybe the Nats, if their 10 year, $30M offer is even still on the table. As a Nats fan, I don’t want him back at that cost.
There are a handful of obvious suitors, pal. Phillies, Dodgers, Yankees, White Sox
Yankees and Dodgers already said they’re out on Bryce. Phillies want Machado. White Sox aren’t serious about either. Bryce will be a Cub.
He wont go to the Cubs unless they can move Heyward, which would be pretty tough.
But the Phillies, Dodgers, Yankees, and White Sox are NOT obvious suitors. I’m not your pal, and you’re wrong. (O.K., maybe the Phillies, if they don’t sign Machado, but it’s been reported that Harper is cool to the Phillies.)
a generational talent that nobody wants to talk about in order to drive down his price.
His pice is too high, if 10 years/$300M is the starting point. Sure, maybe teams are feigning disinterest, but it’s more likely that they’re genuinely disinterested at that price. We’ll see what happens. Should be interesting.
He’s not gonna hustle to make a deal.
It looks like Manny to Yankees, Bryce to Phillies/Nats OR Manny to Phillies, Bryce to Nats. Talk of the White Sox and other teams is just a distraction.
Machado is not going to sign with the Sox
I agree, he’s just taking this meeting to drive up his price for contenders with deeper pockets.
The White Sox would probably want out of the contract after 2-3 years like the marlins with Stanton
Sure, the Sox would want out right when they’re starting to contend. Makes a lot of sense.
How are they close to contending ? They have a good farm but unless the kids come up and produce that’s all it ever will be. Same thing with the padres
Their ETA for most of the important guys are 2019 and 2020. So, they’ll be hoping to compete around 2020-2021. Giving one of these guys an opt out right at that moment would be silly.
Love how teams like the Cubs and Astros were sure to be contenders during their rebuilds in the eyes of so many. When the White Sox do it, they’re bound to fail again and again. Or how other young pitchers can have a bad year and bounce back but not if they play for the Sox. Go ahead and hate on the White Sox if it makes you feel better but be realistic and don’t deny what they got going on. They’re taking a different approach than they have in the past.
The Padres don’t have the money to spend after a proper rebuild, the White Sox do. The Astros, Nats, Phillies, Braves, Cubs, Brewers signed proven big league players to build around their core talent. The White Sox will do the same.
I agree with the theory.
I have major doubts about the young talent the Sox have.
Every team that does deep rebuilds has lots of touted minor leaguers. Those Top 100 rankings are even less creditable then defensive stats. 3-4 years ago the Twins had 5 guys in the Top 100, and 2 in the Top 10.
ChiSoxCity: Clearly the Padres have money to spend…and maybe waste. Did you forget the 8 yrs/$144M they threw at 1B Eric Hosmer last offseason? That’s significantly more than the White Sox top FA contract which is still the $68MM deal to given to Jose Abreu back in October of 2013. As White Sox fans we both expect that to change, hopefully as soon as this offseason with the signing of Manny Machado and/or Bryce Harper.
It’s ludicrous to suggest that the Padres “don’t have the money to spend after a proper rebuild” or even the will. Clearly they overpaid to get Hosmer, significantly if you believe all the reports with the other bids. But they still stepped up. Many believe that the White Sox will also have to overpay to secure either Machado or Harper this offseason. It remains to be seen if they will step up like the Padres did last winter.
He’s using WSox and so is Harper . I like how speculation in media of the brother in law angle? I hate most of my brother in laws or they hate me:)
That’s because they’re Cubs fans
It was hilarious how people hyped up the Alonzo trade as a key to getting machado. Like he would really make the biggest choice of his life based off playing with his brother in law for one year lmao. Just because he is tagging Alonzo’s sister it doesn’t mean he wants to go to chi town
If he goes there it will be because the White Sox waaay overpaid
Manny to Yanks, Andujar and a prospect to Miami for JT , JT or Gary and King to Mets for Thor
Did you miss the point that the Mets just signed their catcher in Wilson Ramos
lol some people are just.. lost
Mets are using Ramos as a leverage piece.
I love how all these Yankee fans are saying the only way the White Sox get Machado is if they wayyyy overpay.
You do understand that is the Yankee way, right? How’d Teixeira, Ellsbury, AJ Burnett, A-Rod, CC Sabathia work out for you guys? Talk about overpaying.
Other than Ellsbury, arguably the worst FA contract in Yankee history, an argument can be made for the rest being worth it, all played major roles in bringing a championship to New York.
I just hope they Tulo his ass right outta here. The only time I ever want to see Yankees on his uniform is if he plays for Staten Island Yankees.
If Machado signs with the White Sox, how can you honestly say it’s an overpay until his career is over? If we gave him $400 million and he helped bring 1 or two Championships back to the South Side; is that considered an overpay? Not by your comment
@whitesoxfan24
If you give him $400 million and he helped one or two championships that would not be be considered an overpay.
UNTIL that happens, it is an overpay open to ridicule, especially if he underperforms.
Sources say Yankees willing to go 300, so see 350-370 needed sign, assuming Phills all talk
So, I guess the same could be said about the Harper contract? He had a horrible spell during last season and he’s asking for the highest contract in MLB history. You can all quote sabermetrics but he can be an egomaniac as well as a head case. Nobody is worth the money he’s asking including Machado.
You or anything else is only “worth” a certain amount once you have that certain amount in your hand.
OMG, seriously? You’re worse than Cubs fans.
Yankees last won championship in 2009. Except A-Rod (signed in 07-08 off-season), all these guys were signed to long term deal in 2008-09 off-season or later. While all played major role in 2009 WS, none of them helped enough after that one season since Yankees have won nothing after 2009.
The Yankees overpay every decent FA they sign. They’re the reason the economic system in the MLB is so screwed up. A salary cap would fix things, but everyone knows the Yankees are paying other owners to maintain the status quo. The Yankees, Red Sox and Dodgers would become irrelevant again if they couldn’t overpay top players from other teams to come to them.
Aside from poor management in the 80s/early 90s when have the Yanks ever been irrelevant?
That’s not true. The white Sox are the first team to give a free agent big money when they signed Albert belle
Albert Belle did briefly become the highest paid player in MLB when the White Sox signed him back in the 1996/1997 offseason. That’s not the same as saying that they were “the first team to give a free agent big money. ”
What was unique to that contract is that it might have been the first one given to a free agent with a player opt-out clause. That particular clause wasn’t quite the same as the ever popular player opt-out that owners are willing to give out today since it was based on specific performance parameters that Belle needed to reach before he was eligible to exercise the opt-out, which he did. That ultimately turned out to be a blessing for the White Sox and less so for the Orioles who subsequently signed him to the next highest MLB FA contract only to see a chronic hip issue force him into retirement.
Correction note: The “opt-out” in Belle’s contract was a clause allowing him to demand that he would remain one of the three highest paid players in baseball. This came on the heels of a 1998 season in which Belle achieved a 7.4 oWAR with 200 hits, 49 HR’s, 152 RBI’s and a triple slash of .328/.399/.655 resulting in a whopping 1.055 OPS. Following that historically great offensive season Belle invoked the clause. The White Sox declined to give him a raise and he immediately became a free agent.
World champions. How about you Chi?
I love how these Yankees fans are saying the only way the Sox get Machado is if they wayyy overpay.
You do understand that’s the Yankee way, right? How’d Teixeira, Ellsbury, AJ Burnett, A-Rod, CC Sabathia work out for you? The list goes on and on.
Posting it twice doesn’t make it more true. 🙂
They all (sans Ellsbury) brought championships to the bronx. You could argue the payments worked, no?
Yeah, I know. New to this forum & for some reason the original post didn’t show right away and there’s no way to delete it this one. I wish they would update that.
I’d say a lot of the: did well out of your list. And the yanks can burden the cost, White Sox cannot.
If anything, Manny would be well-advised to keep his wife as far from the rest of the hens in her family as possible.
Yankeepatriot: And now it’s even more “hilarious” how some are hyping the Carlos Beltran front office hire by the Yankees as a key to getting Machado. The laughs just keep coming, don’t they?
Even with signing Manny I don’t see the rush in trading Andujar. Play him at 3rd until DiDi comes back then move Manny to 3rd. To trade Andujar now would leave a hole at 3rd that would be temporary. Unless they feel Andujar’s trade value would never be higher.
Maybe Andujar to the Tigers for Fulmer.
Fulmer ? He’s not even that good and his arm is a concern at this point. They almost traded for him last off season but thankfully that didn’t happen
Fulmer?
So basically we give Andujar away?
Avila would never accept Andujar for Fulmer straight up, even if he didn’t already have Candelario.
Let’s hope he doesn’t sign. Keep me in your thoughts and prayers.
I’m still holding out hope that one or the other goes to Philly. I’ll keep my fingers crossed until they are under contract with someone. Hopefully the Phillies.
I know Andujar has his warts and I try to be unemotional regarding any players but I just feel something special about Andujar and his work ethic. His glove didn’t seem as bad as his stats reveal. But honestly, the defensive metric show that Sanchez isn’t as bad as the eye test leads you to think.
Andujar reminds me of a left-handed version of Cano or at leas a lesser version of Beltre because of his bat less because of his glove. Right now he’s a guy I can see giving you 25-35 homers a year and a batting average around .290-.300 with a relatively small (under 20%) K rate. I think he’ll learn to take a pitch like Cano did later on in his career.
Manny is better but unless we can get a top SP, which I think we can’t or else we’d have one already, I’d rather go with the kid, sign a glove first SS and go after Harper.
I hope Andujar has thick skin to go with I’ve heard is a huge work ethic because he’s getting roasted by fans. Aside for some throwing errors and a couple of slow glove to throwing hand exchanges I think I could live with his glove as long as his bat stays lethal.
I would just prefer to see us go after Harper and take advantage of what NYS provides to a lefty power bat for 81 home games a year. Put him in LF and think nothing of it until April.
I love andujar too and he’s only 22 or so years old. People harp about his defense and yet in all of these trade proposals on these message boards they all want him on their team, That speaks volumes. He’s not a finished product yet and we have to remember that
LOL! A $300M LF?
OMG….a $300 mil RF? As opposed to what? A $300 mil RF, 1B, SS? Shut up. You’re talking about a LH pull hitter that’s almost a lock for 30-40 homers and an OBP close to or above .400.
We use WAR to value hitters often. You give Harper a league average defensive rating and he’s a 5-6 WAR player easy. Stick him in LF and let him rake. He can easily be a 40 homer/.400 OBP guy every year.
I think war overvalued defensive metrics and undervalues offense. It’s a flawed stat
Nothing about Harper’s career has proven that he’s a lock for 40 homers and a .400 OBP, He’s proven he CAN exceed those numbers, but he’s also gone .370 with 25 homers. Which, don’t get me wrong… is still good. But it’s a pretty big difference from what you’re saying.
And honestly, based off of 2018, even league average defense isn’t exactly a given.
He’s a lock for 30, at best. Not 40. He’s hit over 40 once. Over 30 twice. Let’s not get carried away.
He’s a lock for 25 homers & 75 RBI a year. He’s also not a lock for .400 obp either.
Could he? Yes, if he put forth the effort and stopped trying to hit every pitch 425′.
Playing 81 games in NYS, yes “He can easily be a 40 homer/.400 OBP guy every year”.
Note I said “can easily be”. That’s not claiming it will be a fact.
He’s averaged over a 400 OBP in the last 4 years going over it twice and just missed once. No one is a “lock” but if healthy I’m sure he’ll come closer to what I said than to your 25 hr and 75 rbis. RBIs are team based anyway.
I agree there’s not much point in prognosticating RBI.
The OBP number is skewed upward by an absolutely obscene 2015. And so far there’s not much indication that will be a repeatable performance. His numbers that year are way above anything else he’s done. Playing for the Yankees would likely increase his home run totals some, yes, but I still wouldn’t expect him to be hitting 40 every year
2017 was pretty darn elite too…
LOLOL
Yankees fans and their unrealistic, delusional expectations… The minute Harper doesn’t measure up to those expectations, the media and fans in NY will crucify him. They’re already talking about trading Stanton a year after they celebrated his acquisition in that ridiculous trade with JEETAH. Absurd. You guys don’t deserve either one of these players to be honest.
You really should stop trying to say things like “all” or the “majority” of any fanbase. Makes you sound biased and ignorant. I would say those that have a problem with Stanton are by far in the minority.
This^^^^
Andujar is not getting roasted by Yankee fans? He’s getting roasted by other teams fans who think by roasting him they bring down his trade value……
Lol seriously I have not read 1 Yankee fan talk as if they wanted him traded unless we are getting a top ace in return.
If referring to me there ARE Yankee fans who’ve been ready to toss him but I was referring to baseball fans in general. Most industry writers seem to value Andujar more and see opportunity for him to improve.
Watching Andujar last year was like watching Adrian Beltre when he was coming up. I’m not saying he WILL or even COULD a hof’er but the similarities in the way they played were there.
I REALLY don’t want to see them move him.
Andujar for Bum?
I’m very curious, how would you know about his work ethic?
Everyone that speaks about him talk about his desire to be better defensively. He was even worse in the lower minors but they always talk about how hard he works and has improved. Coaches, Arod and other writers speak on it too.
Do you expect them to call him a lazy butt? The writers only speak of what their sources tell them.
I never claimed to be a first-hand source and NO writers actually watch games, spring training too. Why fight me on this dude? It’s been said and written by various people. It’s not like the same is being said for example about Torres or Sanchez for that matter. It doesn’t feel like a false narrative. The kid knows his deficiencies and I’m sure being benched during an important game stuck with him. I’d like to see what his pride and work ethic might produce.
Well, they had no problem calling out Gary Sanchez when he was in the minors.
I agree. Let him play and develop. I too am a fan of andujar, so hopefully not clouded by that, but I have read the same reports. They said he had work on his defense, but his cannon of an arm could make up for that. His metrics were rather low last year, but over a 20 year career so were DJs and he won 5 gold gloves. Errors are bad, making the plays when you need to, that’s important.
He heard it on the video tape broadcast from the Yankee bench.
Yeah that’s my source. smh.
ey is a tireless fiend.
I heard she’s even simulcasting from SF this year.
Andujar is getting roasted by no one in NY. The fans love him, the team has his back, and the press is on his side.
He doesn’t have “warts” either…. He’s a kid. He’s not the player he will be yet.
Dude his defense is a “wart”. I’m not killing the kid. It’s stupid expect a rookie to be a finished product. Sanchez has a wart. Judge has a wart. All players perhaps other than Trout has a wart. He has a wart too. Probably behind the back of his knee but I’m sure there’s something about Trout that keeps him from being perfect. It’s not an insult.
I cant decide if I want Manny to go anywhere but NY, or if I want to see him go there and crumble under the pressure…
Yankees fans will hate him more than A-Rod and Stanton.
Yanks fans didn’t hate Arod for his play. Most I think were supportive of Arod. It’s the whole PED think that caused an issue. And I don’t think Yankee fans hate Stanton either but had expectations that he’d hit 50-60 homer and were a bit too critical of him hitting with RISP. Still….very much in the minority. The majority of real fans aren’t on websites debating things like we do here.
Why don’t you talk about your own teams players?
Start with Abraeu?
Love or hate?
One of the most consistent hitters in the sport the last 5 years (barring his “groin” injury in the 2nd half last year). How could you not love?
Can Andujar and Frazier get you the Klubot?
You mean Kluber? I would think that would’ve happened already if the Indians wanted to. I would think they must not have wanted that package or wanted more in addition.
Four out of five years he’s pitched like a Klubot.
Kluber is a robot, FYI.
Klube’s middle name is Juggs.
Also, the timing means nothing. They could be gauging the market, then circle back. I’m also willing to include Mike Hill.
No
Willing to include Ellsbury as wellsbury.
Just to update, Manny ate breakfast this morning, used the toilet, and brushed his teeth. Further developments as they occur.
Bryce, on the other hand, used the toilet first. Heyman has taken this to mean he’ll sign with the Phillies. More to come…….
*latest update*
Manny took his time on the toilet & told the media he’s not hustling there.
Bryce got into a fight with the toilet.
Manny hired someone else to wipe for him. Harper just used the bark off the nearest tree.
Rosenthal reporting that twentieth-tier free agent OF Carlos Gomez went see the movie “Aquaman” this weekend, promptly ran out to the shore, stripped himself naked, and jumped into the ocean.
Gomez reports he had several intelligent conversations with the fish, more intelligent than he ever had with MLB beat writers…….
brought a lol..
There’s a lot of talk about Andujar working on his defense, but, other than A-Rod, I can’t really remember a player starting out so bad and improving significantly there.
Arod was outstanding his first year at 3b with the Yanks.
Wade Boggs was a butcher who improved. David Wright, too.
First off not sure how much you watched but yes he was a defensive liability in the playoffs but in the regular season I don’t recall ever saying we need to take Andujar out in close games. He’s a rookie and yes rookies can improve defensively and I think he will improve defensively just as Greg Nettles did.
I’ve never heard anyone judge a players defense based on what they did in the post-season. I recollected that Arod did an excellent job at 3b his first year and when I looked it up I see he had a +11.5 UZR, so no, he wasn’t horrible his first year at 3B. It was quite the opposite of what he said. He wasn’t terrible and got better. He was better and got worse.
Really hard to judge defense without seeing a player in person also. The TV doesn’t show how they anticipate the ball on each pitch or whether they could have reached a ball that got by them.
I was at a spring training game last year watching down the third bad line and you could tell the guy playing 3B was awful. No errors but at least three misplays that a competent player would have made.
Dude if the Yanks are so desperate to unload Andujar, Phillies will drive up 95 with whichever players not named Hoskins, Nola, or Alfaro.
I doubt the Yanks are “desperate” to move Andujar. He’s just their most attractive asset that can be replaced via FA for a better player.
Harper is going to end up in STL
I could see this happening if his demands drop to 8 years.
The White Sox have a better chance of signing him than STL, especially with those terms. The only team that might give him more years and money than the Sox is possibly Philly.
He has 284/10 from the Nats that as far as I know would still be on the table if he wants it.
So he’s meeting the White Sox today and the Yankees Wednesday. Why the delay? He can’t hustle enough to get to NY tomorrow?
You my friend have won the internet today.
They gotta leave a day in between so he can meet with the “mystery team.”
The appearance of a mystery team anyway.
To those with the ridiculous comments that Harper is overrated what games are you watching? The guy gets at least 35 home runs a season at least 100 RBIs in a season and get around and on base percentage of 400. Overrated? Not quite.
He’s only had 100 rbi’s Once but I agree that he is a fantastic talent that is only 26 years old. He’s been up and down a little bit sill fantastic
and yes topped 35 homers once
he’s, not yes…
Maybe the White Sox can pull a trade for Andujar? They need a 3B. That would be great after all this Machado talk.
As a Yankee fan I still rather sign Harper every day over Machado.
Andujar can improve defensively and offensively his numbers are pretty awesome.
Getting a defensive minded ss and signing Harper to play left makes so much more sense.
The Yankees will not play Stanton in left on a regular basis. He’s not very good in left covering that much territory and if he’s not in left then we have Gardner and Elsbury which we know is not an option. Harper is the easy choice.
Saying that I just have to note if Harper is truly looking for 350-400 plus million then Machado has to be the choice.
I don’t believe any of the stories linking Manny to the Yankees nor do I believe anything including our cagey GM suggesting they aren’t on Harper. Half of the 6 outfielders he mentioned are unlikely to start significant games in LF for the Yankees.
I would be shocked if Ellsbury played another game as a Yankee.
Gardy is a 4th OF in their eyes now. The Cutch trade prooved that.
The Cutch trade wouldn’t have happened at all if Frazier was healthier last year. I really feel bad for him because he would have had his chance. He still could get it.
The Yankees historically win with left handed arms and left handed power bats. Harper makes too much sense to not put between Judge and Stanton. Signing Machado raises “what happens to Andujar or Didi down the road” whereas signing Harper means “What happens to Frazier and Ellsbury down the road”. I just don’t see them in a rush to move Andujar unless it’s a really special deal.
I can see the Yanks offering Harper a 10 year/$325 deal.
$40 x 5 (19-23) 1st half of the contract, opt out opportunity after 2023 or $25 x 5 (24-28) for duration of the contract. He will be the highest paid player for a few years, can opt out at age 30 if he wants.
I think they’ll go higher if they need to. This won’t be Corbin or Eovaldi where they’ll stand their ground. I think the fact that they stood their ground on those guys and went with Happ is a sign they’ll go for Harper.
I think the Paxton trade was a sign they’ll get Harper especially considering he’s more or less cost neutral when they trade Sonny Gray.
The more they go for the big guys means the less they throw at the pen though. If they get neither Harper/Machado I see them going big in the pen and even going for a 6th starter.
Tim, I don’t follow any step of your logic. “Stanton hits poorly on Tuesday’s so clearly the Yankees are willing to add a 7th outfielder on a mega deal” what?
that is the most logical argument I have seen on here today. Thank you.
any trade of andujar that does not lead to a real legit #1 SP is a waste/joke
Let me just add one more thing, the Yanks rather not say they are in on Harper because why?
It drives up the price.
They Yanks have stated they are not giving Machado anything near 300 million probably offending him because why?
They are letting Harper know they will sign Machado for a much more reasonable price (reasonable??? Lol) if they don’t come down.
Cashman being the ninja he is.
billy, my man. this. All of this.
I posted this in the blogs, but I’ll post it again. — Basically reiterated everything you just said.
riveraveblues.com/2018/12/holding-hope-harper-1820…
Great technique for buying a car too.
Never be afraid to show them your ass.
Trade Hicks, Florial, and Adams to Indians for Kluber or Bauer plus take on Kipnis contract to fill short term need. Then sign Marwin Gonzalez for utility switch hitter and can play first. Sign Harper and rotate guys through center-field. On any given day then could give us potentially 4-lefties in lineup. Gardner, Gonzalez, Didi, and Harper.
So just trade one of the best CF in the game and perhaps his future replacement to replace them a bunch of guys that simply don’t belong at that position at all? What’s the easy dismissal of Hicks? He’s been outstanding the last 2 years and a top 5 CF.
Hicks is injury prone and only has a year left. Besides you will replace him with Marwin Gonzalez production at first and Boom production with Harper a lefty in Yankee stadium. Plus getting back another elite SP given that our SPs….2 are older in Happ and CC and Paxton also has injury history,. We need insurance.
Forget about his offensive production for a second. He’s a great defender in CF and Harper is NOT suited to play CF.Not over a 162 game season and I don’t want to see either Stanton nor Judge there either. Also, the Indians or whomever are not going to trade Hicks for 1 year for their SP. And so what Hicks will be a FA. Resign him if he has another good season. Trading Hicks opens up another hold in a very thin market.
Southside, exactly right. Yankees fans acting like because Hicks doesn’t hit 30+ HR a year he is replacement level.
So trade a center fielder and the possible future to rotate three non-center fielders?
Hicks won’t be back after this year.
And Florial a prospect, can name 30 prospects for every 1 that actually works out. Never know, Proven commodities are always better.
There is a case for and against Andujar and I think both the fans and detractors have fair points. I think the helium is on his ROY nominations but I will need to stress that in 2015 Billy Burns finished 5th in the ROY votes and he is not that good. Defensively Andujar is a butcher, poor range and cumbersome, can he stick long term is still unknown. But I cast myself back to how Semien was lambasted in 2015 for MLB high errors and in 2018 he was a gold glove nominee.
Can andujar improve defensively, yes he can the advanced fielding metrics don’t lie, he is a poor fielder probably 35-40 grade and unlike Semien who had rather solid advanced fielding metrics once the errors cut down he started to excel. Andujar could work on his defense and improve but I don’t think he is ever going to be a gold glover putting pressure on his bat.
Andujar screams Lonnie Chisenhall or Mikael Franco on a conservative estimation, if he works out he could being Kyle Seager.
Dude what a poor comparison. Burns was a weak hitting CF that had all of a .334 career slugging percentage and 6 homers in his entire 2,700 PA in the minors.
All rookies run the risk of being figured out but Andujar’s performance wasn’t a shocker as all reports said he was a great contact hitter with power who needed to increase his walk total and improve on defense to stick at 3B.
I think Robinson Cano and Beltre with out the defense is a spot on comparison. Time will tell if he can sustain the bat and improve on defense.
He will need to improve defense drastically or end up a DH. Maybe the new Edwin E5 Encarnacion. Mikael Franco was a power hitting rookie that burst onto the scene, then got figured out.
First of all, range at 3rd base is not that important. Yes, Andujar has a way to go defensively, but a lot of his errors were throwing errors. He gets lazy and often drops his elbow rather than throwing over the top, which tends to make throws more erratic and sail on the 1st baseman.
I think the Yanks would make a terrible error – no pun intended – trading Andujar and replacing him, essentially, with Machado.
Matt Chapman disagrees about range, when a third base can field short stop and make plays down the line that is elite and save nearly 100 defensive runs in less than 2 season, Range is paramount, it means the difference between Dee gordon bunting himself on or getting tossed out.
Errors are not Andujars problem, it is the fact he leaked 25 defensive runs on should have fielded balls. Machado on the otherhand is elite, elite glove at third and elite bat
Phillies will sign Machado. Will come down to money, stupid money. NYY seem to be at 10/300mil, maybe they flex to 10/325. The Phillies have already been rumored to be 25 mill more than this offer. What did Corbin do? Grienke? Albert Pujulos? In the vast majority of the time, the players take the most money, EVEN against the Yankees. Machado is a Philly, book it. Whitesoxs visit is for show, pure and simple.
The money he’s asking, he’s well beyond set for lift. If I were him, I would take a slight pay cut not to play for a losing team. I know money will always speak the loudest, I would rather continue to make loving the game easy by winning more often. Go to the yanks in my opinion. If an offer is there, find a way to take it or get it a little closer to what others are offering
Everyone says people will sign for less to be on a winning team. Not so – money talks. Look at Cano. He could have signed with the Yankees – but went to the mariners (who in his 5 years had their best season without him as the main starter)
I agree, in the scheme of things what is the difference between 30 million and 35 million a year other than 5 million? They are both a ton of money, but the majority will sign the 35
Miguel Andujar raked the second half of the season. One has to expect him to improve in 2019. He could be a perennial 30/100 guy and then some. Machado making WAY more money will have to be far and away superior. Andujar has the chance to be an offensive force. Dealing him might be a mistake. Besides, teams would rather have Andujar at his salary than Machado at the money he and his agent hope to get.
True but both on the left side AND in the same lineup would be pretty cool.
I hear you. It seems we are led to believe they won’t play together; that Andujar gets traded to have Didi and Machado on the left side.
I said this over a month ago; a Machado signing protects the Yankees from losing Didi to free agency after the season. It also gives them the option of moving Andujar to 1B if Bird/Voit do not work out. Andujar may become the most dangerous offensive player on that team next year or 2020.
I cannot see any team wanting the defensive metrics of Andujar and Manny on the left side of the field. I would imagine, and be willing to bet, that if the Yankees sign Manny it is for 3rd base, Andujar is gone, torres slides to short and they either bring up wade or have a utility solution to play second. If Didi is possibly gone for the year, they sign a person like Harrison for one year.
Not sure White Sox is for show…..Alonso signing, big time pressure in NYY or Philly with constant “hustle” questions from the media. WS in the shadows he can just play ball with elite players coming up, large latin influence on the ball club. Thinking Philly or WS and Philly would have to outbid.
Good points, you’ve done some homework. The White Sox have a rich history with great Latin players going back to Minoso and Aparicio.
Who would the Yankees trade Andujar for? Don’t seeing them trading for “prospects”, more for a MLB ready player and Kluber and Bauer are probably likely off the market now since Indians don’t have payroll concerns after their recent trades.
Young controllable pitching…..good fit would be the Cardinals and Alex Reyes.
Trade Hicks, Florial, and Adams to Indians for Kluber or Bauer plus take on Kipnis contract to fill short term need. Then sign Marwin Gonzalez for utility switch hitter and can play first. Sign Harper and rotate guys through center-field. On any given day then could give us potentially 4-lefties in lineup. Gardner, Gonzalez, Didi, and Harper.
That’s not crazy! But I have a feeling we won’t be trading Hicks because we need more LH bats with high OBP. I would be fine with trading his last season now at age 30 while his stick is so high and playing a Gardner in cf and occasionally a Frazier. We can easily find a defensive cf at the trade deadline off need be.
Saying all that I’m not too keen on dealing Florial and from what I’m reading the Yanks are extremely high on him as well. I’m also hearing Andujar has been in Tampa working on his defense recently and his work ethic had really impressed Yankee brass so I don’t think he’s a trade option to replace Florial. I don’t think we are a match with Cleveland and honestly I didn’t want Kluber with his age and miles on his arm plus he’s been getting beat recently in big games. I liked Bauer over him but we don’t match up with either as Cleveland ask for the world knowing we will potentially meet in the playoffs.
Yes, but Hicks is injury prone as he has proving in recent years. Indians looking for MLB ready outfielder and Florial will give them incentive since Hicks only has year left. Rarely do teams take back trades like Frazier. We are loaded in the outfield especially if you sign Harper after trading hicks. Can keep Frazier then package Bird up and send him off for a bullpen arm. Our 5 SPs, one will get hurt. Especially given Happ and CC age, have to have insurance. Paxton also has injury history.
I hope the Yanks low ball Machado. If he wants to play that badly for them, he’ll accept their offer. I wouldn’t offer more than 8 years, $225 million, and even that is stretching it.
If he doesn’t like the offer, see ya! Yanks are going to have an excellent team in the next 4 – 5 years with, or without, him.
He’s going to a winner. Not like the Giants or low level teams like the Sox. So yeah the Yankees should stay low. Bet he’s going there anyhow.
The White sox are a smoke screen to get his price up from the Yankees or Phils. It’s laughable he would go to such a losing franchise.
I made this exact comment above but got downvoted. Can we just do away w/ the voting system on here please? If you say something against someone’s precious team they downvote it, regardless of how factual it is.
Or you could just stop caring so much about the voting…
I don’t care about it all. I just think it’s a useless function. Just pointing that out. Most of the time I’m on mobile and don’t even see it. So…go ahead and down-vote this comment (if you have a tiny johnson).
Look at my posts my man.
I have a banned idiot who uses all his fake accs to dv. I doubt they even read my posts, simply dv it due to my sheer # quantity post, internet is filled with trolls.
Look guess fa poll. 15 dv for guessing Grandal, lol. post later dude says Grandal 9 uv, 0 dv
They mean nothing. U shouldnt feel anything. People get thrills from it. Disqus used have identify votes ignore. While, there’s something to be said about having full control of content (comments) maybe they should consider it.
Only the mindless get that easily influenced votes and think maybe they dont deserve att’n by any fix not be needed. Personally, I’d rather get notifications.
@slowcurve I upvoted you to feel better about my johnson.
Mindless wonders downvote and complain if you don’t bow down to their brand of!Personal analytics.
It’s Pathetic.
Don’t worry so much. those are just White sox fans in denial. it’s actually a compliment
In your mind, the White Sox are a loser franchise. Everyone is except the Yankees, right. We saw what a Yankees organization that didn’t overpay/overspend looks like in the 80s. What would the Yankees look like today in a salary cap league?
Those are the rules all teams live by. The white Sox just don’t get it. They have just as much money as the Yankees, That’s just an excuse. Are you telling me the owners aren’t multi millionaires and just hording profit from the fans while not reinvesting. Have a clue. Where’s Chris Sale? LOL!
Machado is A-Rod Jr. Stay away.
Oh Sammy…you have such a cute sling.
QUESTION: What would you do different if you were in Machado’s shoes? Why is he being demonized for looking for the best contract offer available?
ANSWER: Absolutely nothing. The problem is only 3 clubs, along with the proverbial “mystery” team, formerly arranged for a meeting with Machado which leaves at least 26 fan bases not so happy, maybe even jealous or just in need of venting their frustration with the overall system in MLB. Then there are a faction from among the more “fortunate” group of fans who feel the need to boast about the reasons why Machado should choose their beloved team while also trashing the competition.
Maybe first week of January signing, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.
Because if you did, you’d be dead in 7 minutes anyways.
I’d imagine that Yonder Alonso, Wellington Castillo and Jose Abreu will all be there as part of the sales pitch and any meet and greet that might follow with the local paparazzi.
Yanks usually go after these big free agents, but I can see them getting Marwin Gonzalez, Murphy, and 2 relief pitchers of Ottavino/Robertson/Miller/Britton. That might be the best way to go. That would give them the versitility untl Didi comes back. Machado is a start who can do it all and has played in AL East. Yanks made over 600 million last year so they can go in either direction.
Here’s a question – How much would the Sox have to overpay to get one of these guys? Everyone is claiming that they’d have to “grossly overpay” to sign one of these guys, but what would actually be a “gross overpay”? $330M/10yr is only 10% over a $300M/10yr deal. I wouldn’t consider that a gross overpay. An extra $30M may seem like a lot, but it’s only $3M/yr…
The Angles only offered Happ $28M/2yr, and he ended up signing with the Yankees for $34M/2yr. That’s an extra ~21% – and coincidentally an extra $3M/yr. Gross overpay?
Yankees fans think everyone wants to play there. Nah, players just come there to get paid.
You can have Machado. But why? The Dodgers were already good without him. got him for half a year and barely snuck in the playoffs then also barely getting to the WS. This was all suppose to be a slam dunk by adding Manny. Well guess what. He hit a whopping .273 in regular season then when they really needed him he hit 213 in the Post season. He won’t be any kind of difference maker and you would be stuck with him like the Cabrera’s and Pujol’ses of Baseball Hell ror 10 years!!!
Hahn and Kenny know that neither Machado or Harper are signing there. It’s pretty shady actually, they’re trying to build false excitement in the hopes the fans will actually buy season tickets and get their embarrassingly low small market-esque attendance up. Meanwhile, Machado and Harper’s reps are clearly using the Sox to hike up the price for the LAD, NYY and Phil’s.
Anyone that’s even somewhat familiar with Chicago knows that no one would intentionally go to the south side for ANYTHING… especially to play baseball. Just like no one is buying their “promise to contend” in a few years. This is the same inept, clueless front office that thought… that said they were “All In” 3 years ago only to finish with a worse record than teams that were actively tanking.
My prediction stands – Harper to the LAD, Machado to the Phils.
Still obsessing over the White Sox I see…
Haha, if only somebody would obsess over those clowns, maybe they could get some better ratings/attendance and JR would finally loosen up the purse strings. They wouldn’t have to be treated like the red headed step kids of Chicago, a major market and they’re essentially reduced to being a small market team. Who was the last proven MLB stud FA that signed there in their prime? Joey… or was it Albert Belle? When was that? 25 years ago? Haha, and that dude was literally… CLINICALLY crazy. Nope, not obsessing, sorry. Like most MLB fans, just keeping up with the big name FAs this winter, also like most MLB fans, it would be impossible for me to care less about the Northwest Indiana White Sux.
The Cubs are yesterday’s news. A new era of White Sox baseball is sweeping through the city, and Cubs fans aren’t happy about it. Time to bring another championship to Chicago.
I can’t wait for the day when you finally let a racist comment slip…
Haha, damm… I guess they’ve been yesterday’s news for 40 years. But, yeah sure, fresh off a championship with a young, exciting core that keeps winning…definitely yesterday’s news… today’s news and tomorrow’s news in the Chi.
Yup, you clearly couldn’t care less about the Sox. Typical Cubs fan that “doesn’t care about the White Sox.” Sounds about right.
It does some like you are obsessing Bryzzo. Why knock the White Sox. They have a plan and are trying to implement it at least.
I think the White Sox should not be taken lightly in FA. They have money to spend. They play in Chicago, have a nice comfy place to play and a young team on the rise.
If it comes down to Philly or White Sox for instance on Harper or Machado dont count the Sox out.
Naturally those two would prefer an immediate contender so if the Yankees Cubs or Dodgers pony up I would not see them choosing the South side but that is not a knock on the White Sox. Their money is still green like everyone elses.
I hope the White Sox do get good. Nothing better than both sides of town being good and keeping pressure on both owners to compete for the City
Why is Bryzzo so angry?
Eloy Jimenez and Dylan Cease..
Manny to the Angels.
Just say no!!! Please don’t fk up now Cashman and sign him. Wait for arenado next season and pay him. Start Andujar at 1b 20-25 games this year and see what he has. If he fails, trade him next offseason for an ace. Sign Harper and ship Stanton also next year