Talk is Frickin' Cheap

For fun yesterday, I Googled free-agent outfielder Michael Conforto for any updates on his status; some White Sox fans see Conforto as the answer to a perceived hole in right field. Wow, the things they put on the internet. One extremely longwinded fellow had a blog post titled, “The White Sox need to stop f*****g around and Sign Michael Conforto.” This astute observer of the national pastime also applied his talent for language in talking about right-hander Vince Velasquez, recently signed by the Sox as a reclamation project, as evidenced by his 4.95 ERA. But, hey, Velasquez “has the pure ‘s**t’” to be an effective middle- or back-of-the-rotation starter. Then we have the guy who thinks, “White Sox dropped the ball on Kris Bryant.” Yes, I guess all right-thinking fans and commentators want to sign a 30-year old for $182 million over the next seven years; I can’t wait to see Bryant play the field at age 35. With Bryant off the board, this budding GM thinks getting Conforto or Nick Castellanos, since signed with the Phillies, “feels like a must for this team.” Not to me, it doesn’t. If Rick Hahn, an honest-to-goodness general manager, ever doubts himself, all he has to do is check what the self-appointed experts (and you can include me, if you want) have to say. He sure as all h**l couldn’t do any worse. And, while it might pain me to say this, he’s likely to do a whole lot better.