... and Smoltz is Not Far Behind

[Jacoby_Ellsbury]

We were bidding against ourselves for Drew.

[jacksonianmarch]

He rolled snake eyes with Craig Hansen. Not every draft pick he makes is gonna be a big league star but I don't see why it isn't sustainable to have prospects regularly make an impact with the big club.

 

My point is that they hit on far more prospects than most GMs. And when the guys get to the bigs, the sox typically get a seamless transition out of them.

[TheKilo]

What would you say is the + of the off-season acquisitions?

 

Seriously - I do not see any.

 

I am happy with the Sox so far - but the only improvement this year came in a trade of RamRam.

 

Could we have done better even if we did not get Tex - absolutely.

 

You bark up this tree constantly and your act grows tiresome, what could they have done other than get Tex to improve this team outside of what they already have?

 

Penny has two wins, even though he sucked the other night. Saito has two saves. I'm not ready to write either of them off quite yet (I don't think Buchholz is ready to take Penny's place yet).

 

It's too small of a statistical sample size to make any kind of claim against these guys.

[das11209]

You bark up this tree constantly and your act grows tiresome, what could they have done other than get Tex to improve this team outside of what they already have?

 

 

Swisher or Abreau could have been better than Rocco as a 4th outfielder - IMO.

 

Other than Ramirez - I do not think they have made much improvements. Saito has more upside - but I am starting to think Penny is a complete waste of time and money.

[BoSox21]

My point is that they hit on far more prospects than most GMs. And when the guys get to the bigs' date=' the sox typically get a seamless transition out of them.[/quote']

 

That's definitely true but it just sounds like you're attributing that to luck rather than the FO having a criteria for what they're looking for in draft picks and a farm system capable of cultivating that talent and preparing them for the big league level. I don't think it's by sheer coincidence that a lot of home-grown talent end up working out.

[TheKilo]

Swisher or Abreau could have been better than Rocco as a 4th outfielder - IMO.

 

Other than Ramirez - I do not think they have made much improvements. Saito has more upside - but I am starting to think Penny is a complete waste of time and money.

 

Swisher was part of a trade and Abreu wanted a starting job. Next.

[jacksonianmarch]

What we can do that the Yankees aren't doing right now, is we can build up depth around the young core and allow the team to introduce a new player relatively gently, such as the Crisp-Ellsbury platoon last year or the Cora-Pedroia platoon the year before, or the couple years Youkilis spent on the bench. In New York if a kid produces at all he's in the fire, instantly. They can't do it any other way, they just don't have the institutional reserve we have that allows us to do it this way.

 

I disagree with that in part. The Yankees set the blueprint in the early 90s. Draft well, make trades for undervalued players, and then fill the holes with vets when the rookies are ready. George came back and took us away from that. What I found was funny, was the Steinny got bored with winning on the MLB level. So he demanded that all of his farm teams win too. And he demanded that on the smallest draft and INTL signee budget in baseball. This caused us to have poor drafts, getting players who were mostly AAAA in quality.

 

This forced the yankees to be the poachers on the FA market, snapping up every big name under the sun. The sox, under Duquette, tried to beat the yankees to the punch for every big name, and lost. This caused Duquette to be fired and brought in Theo, who recognized that a dollar for dollar battle with the yankees was a futile effort. So, he developed his team, picked up undervalued FA talent and made smart trades for hole fillers to put them over the top.

 

Once 2004 happened, the yankees mindset changed. The Boss fell out of the picture, the sox showed that they could beat us and their minor leagues were getting stocked. All the while, some of our young talent came to bear in Cano and Wang in 2005 and the hot and cold Melky in 2006. But that was all. 2005 was a building yr for the sox while we traded away future All Star catcher Dioner Navarro with Javy Vazquez to get the older Randy Johnson. The power struggle occured that winter as well, leading to Cashman seizing some power from the Boss as he further slipped into oblivion. Once Cashman took the reigns, the prospect level in the system improved.

 

Our 2004 draft featured Hughes, Marquez (who was the main piece in the Swisher trade) and Christian Garcia (who should make his debut this yr if things work out right).

 

Our 2005 draft featured CJ Henry, who was the centerpiece of the Abreu deal, Austin Jackson, Brett Gardner, Alan Horne and JB Cox (who was heading right for a BP spot with us prior to blowing out his elbow, now he's toast).

 

Our 2006 draft was a fantastic draft. Joba Chamberlain, Ian Kennedy, Zach McCallister (in AA now), Colin Curtis (who is killing the ball in AA), George Kontos (AA now), Dellin Betances (A+ ball now), Mark Melancon (in the bigs), Dan McCutchen (dealt for Marte and Nady), Coupled with the INTL signings of Jesus Montero, Jairo Heredia, and Carlos Urena, it could be on of the best prospect seasons we have seen in decaded.

 

Our 2007 draft is headlined by Brackman and Romine, two solid talents to have in the system. Mixed in is the powerful Laird and the solid hitting Suttle. And then have some long range projects in Weems, Grote, and Angelini. Add in DeLeon, Aceves, Banuelos, Sosa and Vizcaino and the 07 class is pretty good

 

Our 2008 draft was headlined by losing out on Cole and Bittle, but we still put together what is turning out to be strong draft. Bleich and Mitchell have started very well, and the young arms of Turley, Marshall, Obrien, and Richardson all have promise. The offensive side of the ball starting with Adams and finally going on to the younger guys with promise in Joseph, Lassiter and Smith. Mix in the INTL class, considered by many to be one of the best and 08 was a good yr for amateur talent signing.

 

If you notice, nothing big prior to 2003. 2004 we have only 3 notables, one in the bigs now, one traded for Swisher and the other a possible blue chipper by the end of this yr. 2005, the only guy to really write home about is Jackson, especially after the injury bug robbed Horne and Cox. 2006 was our real solid yr. 2007 is still being evaluated. And 2008 is freshly minted. Now lets look at the sox

 

2000- Delcarmen and Freddy Sanchez. Sanchez is an all star and MDC might end up being an all star closer or setup man. And they signed Hanley Ramirez that yr too.

2001- Shoppach and Youkilis. Two all star performers. And they signed Anibal Sanchez that yr too

2002- John Lester and Brandon Moss. One all star player and another MLB player

2003- Papelbon, Murphy, Alvarez and Murton. One all star, an above average MLB player, a MLB player and a guy who had a cup of coffee

2004- Dustin Pedroia and Cla Meredith. MVP player and another solid setup man

2005- Ellsbury, Hansen, Buchholz, Lowrie, Bowden. Those were the top 5 picked. Wow. Mark Wagner is still in the fray as is Exposito and Natale. They also drafted but did not sign Pedro Alvarez that yr. And they signed Hunter Jones as a non drafted FA in 2005. This could be the sox banner yr

2006- Bard and Masterson are the headliners. Place, Bates, Cox, Kalish, Weeden, Reddick and Lars could all be knocking on the door real soon.

2007- highlighted by Almanzar and Hagadone and have a lot of long range HS kids behind them

2008- fresh off the mint, but once again, a lot of talent.

 

My point with this post is that the sox had something coming out of every draft for the past 9 seasons that was extremely valuable. From 2000-2004, they drafted or signed at least 1 player who went on to become an all star. All total, 7 players who had all star seasons or should have been invited to an all star game (Shoppach, Pedroia, F. Sanchez, Ramirez, Youkilis, Lester, and Papelbon). Then you factor in the above average players in that time period and you have MDC, A. Sanchez, Murphy and Meredith. Then factor in the guys who made it to the bigs in Alvarez, Murton and Moss. You have a ton of talent coming out of those drafts. Contrasting that to the Yankees and all I have for you is that we signed Wang in 2000 and Melky + Cano in 2001. This is why you can say that the sox can just fill in the spots now. Cause they have the home grown talent which started all the way back in 2000. And if you consider that they also have a better 2005 draft, this is going to be an ongoing trend. That being said, I think from 2006 on, we have either matched or surpassed the sox on a yr by yr basis. So we should be seeing similar returns. But when you consider that the sox didn’t see significant dividends until the 2007 season, you have to take your time. It might be a few yrs before we see Colin Curtin in the OF or Jesus Montero at the plate. It might not happen at all. But since the sox started a full 4 yrs before us and Theo just expedited that significantly with his draft strategy, you can say that. I have a feeling it will be a very similar feel in a few yrs when our system produces just as much talent as yours. But right now, you have the established, young, All Star caliber players already there from your farm to build around. We are hoping that the start was with Wang and Cano and we can add Melancon, Hughes and Joba to the fray this yr. It’s a long road, this player development thing, but it is worth it if you are patient.

[das11209]

Swisher was part of a trade and Abreu wanted a starting job. Next.

 

Were we not all discussiong last season how to get Swisher from White Sox before Cashman scooped him up?

 

4th outfielder on Sox is almost a starting job as Drew is out a lot.

[TheKilo]

Were we not all discussiong last season how to get Swisher from White Sox before Cashman scooped him up?

 

4th outfielder on Sox is almost a starting job as Drew is out a lot.

 

Who would you have traded for Nick Swisher?

 

JD Drew is your starting RF, period. Abreu wasn;t going to sign here for that very reason. Baldelli was signed for $500,000.

[CrespoBlows]

Were we not all discussiong last season how to get Swisher from White Sox before Cashman scooped him up?

 

4th outfielder on Sox is almost a starting job as Drew is out a lot.

 

HOLY f***ING s***, YOU AND DOJJI MUST BE THE SAME PERSON, BECAUSE NO ONE ELSE ON THIS BOARD HAS DISPLAYED THE AMOUNT OF SUCK WHEN IT COMES TO READING COMPREHENSION.

 

f***ING REREAD WHAT YOU WROTE. "ABREU WANTED A STARTING JOB." "LOL THE 4TH OF JOB IS A STARTING JOB IN BOSTON LOL."

 

f*** YOU.

[redsoxrules]

LOL

[Cocos Disciples]

*Squints eyes*

 

A little bigger please.

[Dipre]

HOLY f***ING s***, YOU AND DOJJI MUST BE THE SAME PERSON, BECAUSE NO ONE ELSE ON THIS BOARD HAS DISPLAYED THE AMOUNT OF SUCK WHEN IT COMES TO READING COMPREHENSION.

 

f***ING REREAD WHAT YOU WROTE. "ABREU WANTED A STARTING JOB." "LOL THE 4TH OF JOB IS A STARTING JOB IN BOSTON LOL."

 

f*** YOU.

 

Fixed that for you.

[CrespoBlows]

Fixed that for you.

 

o clevr i c wat u did thar

[das11209]

o clevr i c wat u did thar

 

I am used to your abusive posts before - so I am not even responding t o it.

 

How old are you by the way? From your posts -I am thinking you are in High School.

[CrespoBlows]

I am used to your abusive posts before - so I am not even responding t o it.

 

......

 

How old are you by the way? From your posts -I am thinking you are in High School.

 

Yeah, I am 14. I am starting school in the fall, but I call myself a high schooler already, because i am cooler that way.

[BoSox21]

Yeah, I am 14. I am starting school in the fall, but I call myself a high schooler already, because i am cooler that way.

 

are you getting hair in places you didnt have hair before yet?

[Mr Crunchy]

i am

i have this growth of hair outside my right ear thats amazing and a long hair growing from the top of my ass down to my thigh, its so long i can braid it.

Crespo is abusive

yet somehow i feel very close to him as if he were a son of mine who i never knew about.

You got a long hair growing outta your ass Crespo?

[BoSox1368]

hello

[thebearupthere34]

I think we could have spot started many people in place of Drew he has done some good things and in his first year in Boston his child was dying, I think if we could have waited we could have gotten somethig better for less money and things could have been a lot better in our lives.

[BoSox1368]

@bearupthere, like what exactly?

[Dojji]

At the time, I was all for trading for Ryan Church to be our RF. Sort of a poor man's Drew for far less money.

[BoSox1368]

anyone going to new yankee stadium this week?

[Mr Crunchy]

Regarding Drew...

where do i start as my feelings are well documented but you're knew so i want to be less biased and more optimistic than the usual DL or Nancy Drew offerings.

I think they got him in partnership with Boras and the offer for Dice K, collusion was probably involved.

Why else would Drew bow out of a 12M deal with LA to move east into the pressure cooker in Boston unless he knew theyre be a bump in salary and some security to go with it.

Nobody else was going to pay him that kind of money, no one ever offered him anything close did they?

On the field the guys always been a good to great hitter with some power a good glove and a fair arm....

But the guy dont stay on the field enough.

Initially all his injuries were documented and perhaps justified his DL stints but those excuses before he came to boston have nothing to do with why hes been out since he arrived here.

I can see missing 15 games a year with the tweeks and bangs that are associated with a 200 game schedule between march and october but heres where it gets me pissed and could effect chemistry.

He had to walk past Curt Schilling, Jon Lester and Mike Lowell on his way to the trainers room.

How can he do it without feeling like a tool?

How does this sound to the above men

""CANT GO TODAY FELLA'S TWEAKED MY GROIN"" or cant go today men""THOSE BACK SPASMS ARE REALLY ACTING UP""...

meanwhile schilling stapled his f***ing tendons to a sheath and the other 2 guys came back from cancer and lowell just this year came back from hip surgery....

Hes like those track guys in the NFL, if anything remotely feels funny in their legs they wont play, its their instinct not to go with anything less than 100%.

We can lament the JD Drew deal all we want but with it came what was at the time the best free agent on the market by all experts and that was Dice K.

We did get a game 7 win out of Dice against Cleveland and we did get a grandslam outta Drew in #6, we won the title(PRICELESS) and who can forget the month he had last June?....

The deal now is we need lefty power and JD Drew has the ability to bring it.

why he is missing so many crucial games now is just beyond me, Ive got 100 feet of stitches on my body and I am familiar with pain and how to live with it, Drew will never be able to differentiate the difference between pain and injury and he wont be a guy who will play 150 games a year....

But Id be thrilled with 140games .280 25/100 100 runs scored .375obp

It is essential this guy produces with the rapid decline of Ortiz or we're f***ed my friends.

[Mr Crunchy]

I wanted Aubrey Huff

[Teddyballgame10]

How many more years does Drew have?

[BoSox21]

anyone going to new yankee stadium this week?

 

yea, I ended up finding a buyer for my kidney

[Dipre]

o clevr i c wat u did thar

 

Thk u i know i r teh awsum.

[Mr Crunchy]

A kidney??...at least a kidney, maybe a heart for 2 seats.

Drew signed for 5/70M

[Cocos Disciples]

i am

i have this growth of hair outside my right ear thats amazing and a long hair growing from the top of my ass down to my thigh, its so long i can braid it.

Crespo is abusive

yet somehow i feel very close to him as if he were a son of mine who i never knew about.

You got a long hair growing outta your ass Crespo?

 

Holy s***. Props to you, good sir.