White Sox Quote of the Day: Jose Contreras

by The Wizard on Aug 4, 2006 11:01 AM CDT in White Sox News

Jose on Yulieski Gourriel (2B/3B) who according to the Bogota Times has fled Cuba and could land to the MLB team that bids the highest for him:

[Mark Gonzales]

"He's not as good as [Omar] Linares, but he's pretty good. And he's only 22, so he has a bright future." Linares is regarded as one of the best hitters in Cuban history. Contreras said Gourriel has more power than Seattle shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt. "If things go right for him, he's going to be a good player."

Update [2006-8-4 14:51:21 by thewizardsofoz]: (Sorry, I had to leave all of a sudden and left the entry unfinished)

Couple points:

* 22 probably means 25!

* Do you see Kenny bidding for him if he becomes available?

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" to the MLB team that bids the highest"

so, you mean the yankees.

by larry on Aug 4, 2006 11:25 AM CDT reply actions

Not the Yankees

They're kind of set at 3B, and they'd be fools (and I don't think that Cashman is a fool) to replace a young, inexpensive, very good 2Bman with a young, expensive, unproven 2Bman.

Dude has Red Sox written all over hi,.

by BridgeportJoe on Aug 4, 2006 11:58 AM CDT up reply actions

Just a rumor?

i thought that Gourriel came out and made a statement that the rumors were false and that he was playing happily in Cuba

by Soxattack05 on Aug 4, 2006 11:27 AM CDT reply actions

yeah

it's kinda funny that he wrote this story after the report got rubbished. he didn't just make a statement, he made his statement from cuba.

by larry on Aug 4, 2006 11:43 AM CDT up reply actions

Linares is available

Though, it appears to be a different Linares, a pitcher...

The scouts who came were a bit disappointed to find out that the most interesting player, 23-year-old pitcher Sergei Linares, was suffering from food poisoning. Linares is reported to throw in the high 90s, but he was held out of the simulated game and limited to a side-throwing session.

Contreras' Agent set up a tryout for 4 Cuban defectors in the Dominican Republic, and although the White Sox were not one of the teams mentioned to be in attendance, I think it's a pretty safe bet that we had some representation there.

AIM: SouthSideCheat

by The Cheat on Aug 4, 2006 12:57 PM CDT reply actions

Pics

http://globalbaseball.wordpress.com/files/2006/08/picture-060.jpg

http://globalbaseball.wordpress.com/files/2006/08/picture-061.jpg

AIM: SouthSideCheat

by The Cheat on Aug 4, 2006 12:59 PM CDT up reply actions

The Sox ought to be in the bidding

I'd prefer Gourriel, but would love to have either of these players. The Sox can arguably go cheaper next year -- say, by trading Garcia, putting McCarthy into the rotation, and by getting rid of Pods and going with Sweeney/Fields -- yet still be better.

I think I'd rather pay either of these two than anybody in the free agent class.

by CWSKeith on Aug 4, 2006 1:13 PM CDT reply actions

Given the state of the minors

I would hope the Sox would bid and spend some cash to infuse some talent. Starting pitching and middle infield are two areas where the Sox have almost no real prospects, it seems. But, considering the Sox didn't spend what it took to sign Duffy, I'm not optimistic.

What about Matsuzaka? If he's posted, I'd like to see the Sox at least bid. He's only 26, and would be the best SP on the market if he comes. Again, I've read that he's already virtually a Yankee, so it's probably not a possibility...

by hitlesswonder on Aug 4, 2006 1:55 PM CDT up reply actions

Not Matsuzaka...

IIRC, I think the rules are that the team who eventually bids on him first has to make a rather large bid to the team (or league?) that "owns" him. Thus, even though his contract might 'only' be 4/$48 (that's probably way low, too), you're going to still be paying close to $15 million a year factoring in the initial bid as well.

I don't think you have to do that for Gourriel or this Linares. This is a spot where the Sox really need to take advantage of having Contreras on the team (and last year El Duque). They need to pimp the success that those two had here. They also need to pimp the diversity within the organization, and the huge hispanic influence in Chicago (on the team, as well as within the city).

Maybe I'm setting myself up for dissappointment, but I'll be quite peeved if I find out the Sox didn't make a reasonable offer to either of these two. If the Yanks/Red Sox give him a boatload of cash, that's one thing, but now that our payroll is where it is, the Sox ought to be making a good offer.

by CWSKeith on Aug 4, 2006 2:28 PM CDT reply actions

Gourriel didn't defect.......

and the guys who did aren't the top cuban guys. By the way the Linares Contreras is talking about is over 35 by now and doesn't even play for the national team anymore.

by bhoov on Aug 4, 2006 9:33 PM CDT up reply actions

Off Topic: Tom Gorzelanny

Anyone know the story on why he wasn't signed? Was he intent on going to Kansas, and the Sox just 'took a flyer' on him to see if they could get him with a low offer? I know he's not the first late-round pick not to sign, only to improve his draft status with a couple of years in college.

I'm bringing this up because I'm watching the Cubs game right now, and they said he was a Sox fan growing up, and was a local kid. You'd figure he would've signed even if he was a 38th rounder and the money wasn't that great. Just sort of frustrating to see that the Sox scouts got it right with this kid, yet weren't able to sign him.

by CWSKeith on Aug 4, 2006 2:36 PM CDT reply actions

went to Kansas out of high school..

...and something didn't work out right there - may have had arm trouble. He did go to Triton andperformed well and impressed there enough to catch Pitt's attention. My son and some of his friends know him through ball - I'll find out more

by DickdaStick on Aug 4, 2006 3:17 PM CDT up reply actions

Late pick

It's pretty rare for a late high school pick to sign. They usually get a very small bonus offer and little guarantee of anything above playing in a complex league or out in the rural Northwest. If the guy has a legitimate D-1 offer, his best bet is to go to school for 3 years and hope to improve. Or better, flunk out and transfer to a JUCO and get drafted a year earlier (Gorzellany). The kind of player who signs in that situation is either incredibly poor and needs any amount of money for his family, or someone who knows they can't hack the academics of college.

Andrew Miller just signed with the Tigers and is guaranteed a September callup as part of his contract.

by Bull Pain on Aug 4, 2006 3:18 PM CDT up reply actions