Rios to the SOX?

[Ruskie33]

This could be a huge upgrade.

LINK:
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4384253

[nitetrain8603]

I don't think it'll happen simply because he has a NTC which he could use in this situation and he would have nowhere to play for this year.

[ChronicKerr]

Why would he prefer not to play at all?

[TNBT]

I'm still pretty new to baseball so I don't understand this whole process. Why would a team waive a player? I'm used to the NBA system where you waive a player when you no longer want them on your team, and they are then free to sign elsewhere.

How does the waiver system work in baseball? If someone can give me an explanation in noob terminology, it would be much appreciated.

[Cliff Levingston]

I don't think it'll happen simply because he has a NTC which he could use in this situation and he would have nowhere to play for this year.

Someone on the score this morning said that his limited no-trade clause doesn't kick in til 2011. But even so, why wouldn't he want to come to Chicago and have a chance to get to the playoffs? In that division, he doesn't stand a chance.

Cliff Levingston would be curious about what they would do with the lineup after adding Rios. It'd be REALLY tough to take Pods out of there since he's playing great and is our only true lead=off hitter. Jermaine Dye is Jermaine Dye. Carlos Quentin has had a tough season but he was in the MVP running last year; you can't give up on him yet.

[Shootdabull]

I heard the same thing on the score this morning - limited no-trade clause doesn't kick in til 2011.

This would be a big boost to the outfield - after dye & pods nobody has done anything. I'm not sure if Carlos is fully recovered from his injuries and it could be used to give him a rest and allow us to rest Dye a little bit for home stretch. Long term the outfield is very questionable as I think Carlos & Dye's contracts are both up. Pods is doing well but he has not shown staying power in the past. We would have Rios penciled in the line up for the next few years.

We are only three games back so if we could add Peavy & Rios that maybed enough to help us catch the tigers.

[Shootdabull]

How does the waiver system work in baseball? If someone can give me an explanation in noob terminology, it would be much appreciated.

I like the way Jayson Stark at ESPN explains it:

There are all kinds of waivers for all different occasions. But essentially, here is how waiver deals can be made between Aug. 1 and the Aug. 31 deadline for setting potential playoff rosters:

Virtually every player in the major leagues will be placed on waivers this month, whether a team intends to trade that player or not. If nothing else, the sheer volume of names can at least disguise players whom clubs do want to sneak through so they can be dealt.

If a player isn't claimed by any team in either league, he can be traded until the end of the month to anyone.

If a player is claimed, but only by one team, the player can be traded only to the team that claims him.

If a player is claimed by more than one team, the club with the worst record in that player's league gets priority -- and the player can be traded only to that team.

If a player is claimed only by teams in the other league, the club with the worst record in the other league gets priority -- and the player can be traded just to that team.

If a deal can't be worked out or the team doesn't want to trade that player, he can be pulled back off waivers once in August. If he is placed on waivers again before September, he can't be recalled a second time.

Or, if a team is just hoping to dump a player's salary, it can simply allow a team which claimed that player to have him for a small waiver fee. If that happens, the team that gets the player has to pay his entire salary. That's how the Yankees were stuck with Jose Canseco and the Padres were stuck with Randy Myers in recent years: They claimed those players, thinking they were just blocking other teams from getting them. Instead, their old clubs said: "You claimed him. You got him."

In the past, many teams claimed players just to keep them from being traded to contenders with a better record. This year, that isn't expected to happen as often, because most teams can't afford to get stuck with a big contract if they're awarded a player they really didn't want.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/s ... id=1860265

[TNBT]

Thanks Shootdabull. I'm used to the NBA trade and free-agent system, so learning a whole new sport and league(s) is difficult. I get how the system works now though. Thanks.

[Shootdabull]

The waivers are alot trickier in baseball but some deals do get done in the wavier route. By claiming Rios just means we have a shot at him. I have a feeling though the Jays would like to get a player back in return. If it is just a money issue and no other teams claimed him he will be ours. It sounds like his contract goes way up after this year so maybe they are interested in cutting salary.

[beefman]

for that large contract and the state of the economy, it better work out.

[nitetrain8603]

Sox end up getting Rios for nothing. Per Joe Cowley, the clubhouse is kind of shocked. Seems like they are caught off guard especially Jermaine Dye. My thoughts are that he pretty much knows it's the end of the road for either him or Thome or possibly both.

[Pax for Prez]

Sox end up getting Rios for nothing. Per Joe Cowley, the clubhouse is kind of shocked. Seems like they are caught off guard especially Jermaine Dye. My thoughts are that he pretty much knows it's the end of the road for either him or Thome or possibly both.

Thome is gone after this season.

Dye & the Sox have a mutual agreement for $12 mil. I believe, with $1 mil. buyout.

Dye might only be around if he agrees to DH most of next season.

Great Move again by Kenny Williams retooling while challanging for the Divsion !!

[TNBT]

I really like the group of guys we have now. With Quentin, Podsednik, Dye, Wise and Kotsay in the outfield, I think we have a pretty good squad. However, when you look at it long-term, we needed to make a move like this. Dye is 35, Podsednik is 33 and both are coming out of contract soon. Add to that the fact that Wise is 31 and Kotsay is 33, and you can see that we needed to bring in a young-ish guy who will be here for the future. Now as I said, I love the team that we have, so I don't want to see anyone go, but sports is a business. Moves will be made. It's probably the end of the line for Thome, and maybe the end of Dye's starting in the outfield. Either way, I'm excited about this deal. It's going to cost us a lot, but we're getting an outstanding talent who is still young enough to contribute for years to come. I hope the move helps to snap him out of his slump.

[northbrookrich]

This is the difference between Williams and Paxson. Williams can retool the White Sox on the fly, while Paxson needs to have the Bulls in the gutter before he can start the rebuilding. Great place to start the building of a club is a top of the line starting pitcher and a multi-tool center-fielder. It isn't without risk, but if it works out, the Sox will contend for the playoffs each year for the next half decade. Go SOX!!

[Shootdabull]

I think Kenny made a good move for the next few years. Rios starting his peak years. He has hit around .290 the last several years with this year being a little down. I don't think Carlos or Pods have contracts for next year. Even if both come back and we pick up the option on Dye that gives us a pretty good outfield with pods playing the filler role and maybe using dye some at DH assuming Thome is gone.

Adding Rios should help our playoff drive. He will become our best center feilder right away. Now we just get Peavy healthy and catch the tigers........

[Cliff Levingston]

This is the difference between Williams and Paxson. Williams can retool the White Sox on the fly, while Paxson needs to have the Bulls in the gutter before he can start the rebuilding. Great place to start the building of a club is a top of the line starting pitcher and a multi-tool center-fielder. It isn't without risk, but if it works out, the Sox will contend for the playoffs each year for the next half decade. Go SOX!!

It's much easier to acquire big names in baseball. Every year some small market team wanting to shed salary is looking to trade a good/great player. And since there's no salary cap, any team that's willing to take on some payroll could pretty easily acquire said big name players. Kenny was able to get Peavy and Rios almost strictly because the Padres and Jays were desperate to shed salary. The only deal recently in the NBA that can rival a pretty common MLB deadline deal is the Gasol trade and we all know how out of the ordinary that one was.

Though still, Cliff Levingston is pretty excited to see how this move works out. Hopefully Rios will be rejuvenated here and pick up his offense to complement his great defense. Lord knows we could use a consistent center fielder. Should be really interesting to see what happens with Dy,e Quentin and Pods all deserving of playing time as well this season. Can Quentin or Pods play second base?

[limpdilznik]

finally- the Sox have a legit CF! a 5 tool player heading into his prime. when's the last time we've could say that?

Pods has been great/has surpassed expectations but myself and the rest of the Sox fans are waiting for the other shoe to fall off. defensively he's been terrible

CQ seems to be coming around with his bat but he can't run/field either

I say start Rios over Pods or Thome. plug in Getz at leadoff.

It's a gutsy move. i like it. i like it even more that Reinsdorf spent the money. Sox fans, we better start showing up to Comiskular!

[SportsWorld]

Wasn't a big fan of the signing when I first saw it and now I really don't like the move. Alex Rios is a nice defensive CF but he's a very poor hitter. Not worth close to the money he is making.

[ChronicKerr]

Pretty easy to say the Rios and Peavy signings didn't help at all this season. Hopefully moving forward they can prove to be worth the money that their former teams didn't want to pay them.

[Darkseid]

Hitting 158 for the Sox.

I love to hate this guy. I follow CWS box scores just to see Rios go 0/3 every night.