05/27 COBS (Garza) @ Pirates (Bedard) 12:35 WGN

[Hairyducked Idiot]

I am still 100% behind Theo and I think its idiotic for people to sour on him 2 months into his first season. We all pretty much knew this team had a chance to suck, and regardless of how you feel about this strategy, if you were behind Theo in November, you should be behind him in May. Give the guy at least 2 years to prove that he is the boy genius he was in Boston.

 

I don't think we have to choose "behind him" or "not behind him."

 

I'm disappointed that he chose to give up on the 2012 team very early, and I still don't think it was necessary or wise.

 

I'm quite excited about his overall organizational approach to scouting and development, and I'm quite hopeful that it pays off.

 

I'm in love with the Rizzo and Marshall trades and think that they show exactly the sort of eye for hidden talent that we hoped for, and I've seen that he was right about Ian Stewart. I'm a bit puzzled by the Concepcion situation, but there's plenty of time for him to be proven right. I'm willing to give him a pass for swinging and missing (so far) on Volstad, but I'm not thrilled that he chose to deal Zambrano in the first place.

 

I'm concerned about his (Hoyer's) roster moves this year. If they are just extending the concept of organizational roster fill to the majors temporarily, fine, but what if they really like having guys like Joe Mather and Reed Johnson on the team?

[Soul]

One thing's for sure. I'm not spending a dime in February on tickets next year.

[Gilby]

I am still 100% behind Theo and I think its idiotic for people to sour on him 2 months into his first season. We all pretty much knew this team had a chance to suck, and regardless of how you feel about this strategy, if you were behind Theo in November, you should be behind him in May. Give the guy at least 2 years to prove that he is the boy genius he was in Boston.

 

I don't think we have to choose "behind him" or "not behind him."

 

I'm disappointed that he chose to give up on the 2012 team very early, and I still don't think it was necessary or wise.

 

I'm quite excited about his overall organizational approach to scouting and development, and I'm quite hopeful that it pays off.

 

I'm in love with the Rizzo and Marshall trades and think that they show exactly the sort of eye for hidden talent that we hoped for, and I've seen that he was right about Ian Stewart. I'm a bit puzzled by the Concepcion situation, but there's plenty of time for him to be proven right. I'm willing to give him a pass for swinging and missing (so far) on Volstad, but I'm not thrilled that he chose to deal Zambrano in the first place.

 

I'm concerned about his (Hoyer's) roster moves this year. If they are just extending the concept of organizational roster fill to the majors temporarily, fine, but what if they really like having guys like Joe Mather and Reed Johnson on the team?

 

Joe Mather has been an excellent bench player and signing so far. Reed Johnson is a 5th outfielder. Neither of them are worth worrying about at all. They are very easy to get rid of if they need to.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Don't get me wrong, I like both the Rizzo and Marshall trades a lot but hidden talent didn't enter into either.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

Joe Mather has been an excellent bench player and signing so far. Reed Johnson is a 5th outfielder. Neither of them are worth worrying about at all. They are very easy to get rid of if they need to.

 

I'm not worried about whether they can get rid of them. I'm worried about whether they want to get rid of them. Wanting Reed Johnson on your baseball team is not a desirable trait in a GM.

[Guest]

The difference in bench options is not exactly something of much consequence. None of them have taken ABs from guys who need them, and they've shown an ability to not get retreads or jettison them when there are good in house options(Clevenger, Cardenas). Jackson and especially Sappelt are justifying the need for guys like Mather and Johnson.

[davell]

Reed almost took a coaching job over the offseason. I honestly think the reason he's here is to mentor guys like Campana, Sappelt, and Brett. Reed is probably a guy they can learn a lot from. Not from a playing standpoint as much as the general work ethic stuff. Yes, there's a debate as to whether it's worth having a player around for this, but that's the feeling I get as to why he's here this season.

[Gilby]

Joe Mather has been an excellent bench player and signing so far. Reed Johnson is a 5th outfielder. Neither of them are worth worrying about at all. They are very easy to get rid of if they need to.

 

I'm not worried about whether they can get rid of them. I'm worried about whether they want to get rid of them. Wanting Reed Johnson on your baseball team is not a desirable trait in a GM.

 

Reed is depth. He had a nice, albeit very lucky, season last year, and is well liked in the clubhouse. There just wasn't much downside to it. It's possible they just planned for him to keep a roster spot warm for Sappelt and Jackson, and neither have deserved a call up.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Theo made his objective perfectly clear: acquire good young players that can help us win now and in the future through trade and free agency. So far, he's down just that, althoug it hasn't yet paid off. So far, those he's acquired fitting that criteria are:

 

Rizzo

Stewart

Wood

Volstad

Valbuena

Cardenas

Maholm

Sonnesntine

Sappelt

Torryes

Cates

 

None of them have yet translated into big league wins, and aside from Rizzo even minor league wins, but these players deserve patience.

 

I really don't get paying as much as he did for Johnson when he or someone similar could have been had at a much lesser price. Still, even the rest of the junk, like Mather, Camp, Corpas, Lopez, Amezaga, Tolbert, Rowand-Smith, and Robertson made some degree of sense at the minor league deals they signed. If we had managed to contend, having big league ready fill ins at spots where no real prospects were being blocked wouldnt have been a bad idea.

[dfnowak]

Im fully behind Theo and Co., but I still dont like their approach to this season. Looking at the free agent tracker from this past off season shows more than a few quality relievers who signed one year deals, which is very reasonable and can BOTH help you now and not financially strap you in the future. The patchwork bullpen didnt have to be this bad.