Haven't read the whole thread but Roch and Melewski both had columns up bright and early today, so it looks like they're both safe. They're probably pretty cheap too, compared to the names released. So they got THAT going for them.     Which is nice.

I won’t argue with that. We could speculate deep into the weeds on this. Maybe he is exploring signing Andrelton Simmons, which would require stretching pennies into copper wire. Who knows. I will say that you his does not disgust me, nor does it alarm me. It did raise an eyebrow, however.

I'm gonna miss Thorne, Tom Davis, and Dempsey.  Enjoyed their delivery and enthusiasm as much as anything.  It's sad when the voices you get very used to are no longer there.  Tom Davis cackling at every quip Dempsey threw always cracked me up. Would have rather done some creative accounting to defund and disembark Chris Davis instead of excising these more valuable pieces to the club.

1) Yes ....but that doesn’t mean you know how they decided on Kjerstad internally. We know they wanted to overslot players later. The exact details can be speculated about but no one outside the organization can claim them as fact. 2) Yes ,...but again, The exact formula for why they like him over Martin or the Lacy in not known. We do know he accepted considerably less money than Martin wanted. And based on their signing bonuses with the teams that selected him it’s fair to assume who wanted fair slot value and who might have been willing to cut a deal. I think it’s fair to say that guys that signed for slot probably wanted slot at #2 as well. In my opinion, if you want a guy to sign for considerably less than slot you have to reach.    3) Most scout sites agree....But, I’m not sure how this helps your argument. So was Torkleson and Martin. I’m not sure about the other hitters they passed on to get to Kjerstad. Also, I think the money issue is more conclusive. 4)Obviously there were more than just Martin that they didn’t want to pay number 2 money. Kjerstad accepted 7.5 million dollars less than #2 money. Why would he do that? We are talking a million or two that might make your argument more playable. It’s obvious they wanted to play the over slot game later. Because, that’s exactly what they did!    5) I don’t think this proves anything! But, ok ....He was willing to accept 7.5 million less.    6) Obviously! The scouting services are in the business of evaluating players. Obviously there are differing opinions, what’s your point? That you know better than them? Elias had $7.5 million dollars as a reason why he chose Kjerstad over the 8 or so other guys that most places had him rated.

I think its harder for a competitive team to delay a player's call up from the minors because if he can add to a playoff run he is likely to get the call.  Think Manny.