Five years control of mediocrity is five years of mediocrity
I'm never letting one game get me down, and I'm having more fun watching this year's Sox than I did in '22 and '23, but last night was not fun.
I guess when we play the Yanks, a well pitched inning does not register like maybe it should.
Despite tonight's Criswell v Rodon match-up, I think we have a good shot at a win. I'm not going into this game all depressed.
When you say it's gonna happen now
When exactly do you mean?
Can't disagree.
I'm not sure the Sox brain trust has many (or any) smart guys. They did know Cora was unhappy with Dugo, but they also needed to look at Dugo's track record--and remember that short right field wall in Yankee Stadium. His lifetime OPS, .765, ain't great but is definitely playable, and so is his defense in right field.
The same not-so-smart guys who sent Dugo to the Yankees sent Sale to Atlanta--and paid his freaking $17M salary this year! Oh, and signed Giolito for $38M for 2 years, which is already $38M for one year, assuming he can pitch next year.
You lead the pack in not getting down, but I agree this team has been fun, mostly because of the rotation, but now and then the lineup has looked decent. Like games 2 and 3 vs the Phillies 2d best pitching staff in MLB.
Last night, however, the Sox were 1/11 with RISP and the 2 through 5 hitters were 0 for 15.
I'm not sure why you seem to be assuming Weissert is and will be mediocre. He has a good WHIP (1.15,) which beats the league RP 1.28 WHIP. He wasn't even the main guy in the trade, as Fitts has high hopes on being better than Mediocre,
We know who Dugo was and is- barely better than mediocre.
I'd rather have Abreu and Ref in RF.
I'd rather have 10 years of Weissert + Fitts than 1 year of Dugo on a team like this year's Sox.
When you say it's gonna happen now
When exactly do you mean?
Sadly, having lower expectations has likely played a role in my enjoyment level, but the joy goes beyond just watching the pitchers do way better than expected. The D has looked better than April, but has still been an overall joy-killer since then.
I'm really enjoying watching our young players do well and or look more promising than they did in February.
Wong has been amazing.
Abreu has, too.
Rafaela needs some work, but overall, he looks more promising, now than last winter.
Valdez has seemingly worked out his kinks and even looks a bit better on D.
Refsnyder is no spring chicken but has amazed me, and I've been tooting his horn before this year.
Duran is shaking of concerns that 2023 was a fluke. This guy is for real.
I mentioned that Devers was still young enough to have a career year, and he might be in it, now.
DHam and Romy have already outshone all the other back-up middle infielders we've seen since 2021.
As inconsistent as our offense has been, I'm not worried about it, all that much, going forward. We need a big RH'd bat, for sure, but that is but one need out of 9 positions. Our positional depth looks very good, and we will soon be adding Mayer, Anthony and Teel to it- yes, all lefties, but still...
The future of our pitching staff- top to bottom, may show some holes, but to me, it looks better than it has since going into the 2019 season. It's not as good as the numbers show in 2024, and losing Pivetta, Jansen & martin will hurt, but who here feels worse about these guys than they did in February?
Houck
Crawford
Criswell
Slaten
Bernardino
Weissert
The only longer term pitchers who have seen their stock fall are...
Bello
I Campbell (who is looking great at AAA, now)
and who else? Wikelman, Murphy & Walter?
We have seen our big three doing well on the farm.
We have seen some major steps taken by Perales (before his injury,) Campbell, Lugo, JH Garcia and more.
It's hard to be "down" with so much going on that looks bright(er).
When you say it's gonna happen now
When exactly do you mean?