9/18 @ Baltimore

[Maxbialystock]

THis was an impressive come from behind victory in a game that looked like an early blowout. Add to the comeback that they won the game in extra innings on the road. These are the type of games that good teams win. We don'twin these games as a function of the god of randomness. This team wants these games more than their opponents want them. They are a bunch of punchless little smurfs, but they are stubborn determined smurfs. Benintendi was not having a good AB when he got the game winning hit. He was out of sync in that AB, but he did just enough to get it in play and get a seeing eye base hit through the hole. It barely rolled into the OF, but it was a line drive in the Box Score.

 

Punchless and little by and large applies to the four killer bees (Betts, Bogie, Beni, and JBJ) even though Bogie is 6'1".

 

All are having down years, but they are still I think the core of this team. One of them--mostly Betts--leads the Sox in every offensive category you can think of--runs, rbi's, total bases, OBP, SLG, OPS, SB's, dingers, doubles, triple, hits, walks, you name it. In many of those categories 3 of those 4 are among the top four on the team. I think that's why Bogie, Beni, and Betts are pretty firmly entrenched in the top 4 in the batting order in September--because overall they have been the most reliable offensive players on this team.

 

JBJ is stuck in 9th, but that hasn't kept him from doing some damage.

 

Those four killer B's are ages (meaning their birthdays are this year) 23, 25, 25, and 27 which have already led many on talksox to discuss who should be a keeper and who not. For my money, they all are. But the rejoinder to that is: "yeah, but you don't have any money,and these guys could be expensive to keep in this era of astronomical MLB salaries."

 

Anyway, those four have been pretty darn useful in this stretch run, especially now that Nunez is out and Pedey is not quite Pedey (lately). Moreland's doing OK, season to date, but HanRam--apparently because of a nagging injury--is not. Devers bat has helped for sure, but not his glove or arm (DWAR -.2).

 

Yes, pitching is still our long suit. Last night Fister bombed, but the bullpen picked up the pieces beautifully. As good as it is, the pitching will always need the lineup to score some runs in order to actually win the game--see some of Sale's starts early this season.

[cp176]

I don't think that it makes any difference to these guys who they play either where or when. I like that.

[TylerD]

It's weird, because I've had the feeling all year, even back when Houston was almost as good as the Dodgers, that we would be able to handle them in the playoffs. I don't know what exactly makes me think that, but I feel good about Houston in the first round.

 

This! I have had the same feeling and I think it might be mainly due to the fact their pitching doesn't overly scare me. They are just slightly above average and I know they have a high powered offense but I would still rather take that on than Cleveland's #1 pitching rotation. Either series would be tough and I would much rather play the White Sox and Athletics in the playoffs lmao but if I had to choose its definitely Houston over the Guardians.

[Thunder]

I don't think that it makes any difference to these guys who they play either where or when. I like that.

 

For the most part, I agree, because it seems like in the last week or so, we're starting to hit our stride. Now, we're not winning every game, like it could be argued that we should, but two comeback wins in 4 games, and a near comeback on Sunday, we're at least showing the grit that is required to play in October, and the grit that we were lacking last year in the ALDS against Cleveland, when we fell behind and just seemed to give up.

[bkzwhitestrican]

Can you guys stop with these extra innings comebacks? So annoying!!!

[TylerD]

Can you guys stop with these extra innings comebacks? So annoying!!!

 

Definitely makes for a late night for me when I have to be up at 6 am the next day for work lol.

[Spudboy]

Todd Walker. Seems very good to me so far. Comfortable, some good insights, speaks well... most importantly (for me), he has a good announcing voice and is aware of cadence and the rhythms of speech. That stuff can't be taught.

 

Is this his first time in the booth?

 

I agree except that I believe that those two things can be taught.

[Bellhorn04]

this team wins in spite of JF. it's as simple as that....

 

Poor JF gets no respect...even when we're winning all these late inning thrillers with fire and desire.

[Spudboy]

Alex Speier with more illumination -- Devers hasn't hit a HR in a while and he is making some errors and Pedroia's knee still hurts. Oh boy, riveting. They are going to hold him over for another half inning for more useless information.

 

You ignore his obvious value.

 

He is a good role model for male stat geeks. They get fashion examples from him.

 

Also he is helping the market for pocket protectors and first aid tape.

 

Give the guy some credit.

[Slasher9]

Poor JF gets no respect...even when we're winning all these late inning thrillers with fire and desire.

 

without a doubt we would be 150-0 without JF. our magic number would be negative 60 something something.....

[Slasher9]

You ignore his obvious value.

 

He is a good role model for male stat geeks. They get fashion examples from him.

 

Also he is helping the market for pocket protectors and first aid tape.

 

Give the guy some credit.

 

i like him. do you guys really hate the dude? i mean, at least he gives us a 1/2 inning break from whatever slug is sitting in for remy.....

[mvp 78]

Fire Farrell.

Fire Amaro.

No more boneheaded plays.

[mvp 78]

i like him. do you guys really hate the dude? i mean, at least he gives us a 1/2 inning break from whatever slug is sitting in for remy.....

 

He's a fine writer and has good insight. He's just really boring on tv.

[Spudboy]

Great throw by JBJ

 

It was.

 

It was a great play all around.

 

Bradley put himself in perfect position to grab that carom and quickly made the pivot and made a near perfect throw to second.

 

I hope Beni saw that and let it soak in.

[TylerD]

Fire Farrell.

Fire Amaro.

No more boneheaded plays.

 

Farrell's fait will be decided on what kind of run we have in the playoffs is my guess. Even though a lot of people want him fired right now regardless of what happens. If we make it to the World Series can't see him going anywhere.

[mvp 78]

Farrell's fait will be decided on what kind of run we have in the playoffs is my guess. Even though a lot of people want him fired right now regardless of what happens. If we make it to the World Series can't see him going anywhere.

 

If they make it to the WS, they should give him an extension even if they end up losing.

[cp176]

i like him. do you guys really hate the dude? i mean, at least he gives us a 1/2 inning break from whatever slug is sitting in for remy.....

 

I don't like the ties!

[TylerD]

If they make it to the WS, they should give him an extension even if they end up losing.

 

This.

 

Not saying we aren't a good team but not so sure the World Series will be such a gimme like they were in 04 and 07. Dodgers, Nats and Cubs would be one hell of a tough series for the Sox.

[mvp 78]

If they win one series: one more year for Farrell.

 

If they win two series: extension for 2-3 years.

 

If they win the WS: extension for 4-5 years.

[Maxbialystock]

This.

 

Not saying we aren't a good team but not so sure the World Series will be such a gimme like they were in 04 and 07. Dodgers, Nats and Cubs would be one hell of a tough series for the Sox.

 

Tough crowd. In 2004, 2007, and 2013 the Sox had really good offenses and led the league (or near it) in runs scored, OPS, etc. Plenty of dingers too.

 

Indeed, in all three years the Sox led MLB in net runs scored vs. runs scored against--

 

In 2004 the Sox net was +180 and the Cardinals were the only ones better with + 187. Does anyone remember who we played in the WS?

 

In 2007 The Sox led MLB with + 210, and the next three were the Yankees at +191, the Guardians at +115, and the Rockies at +110. Does anyone remember we played in the ALCS and WS that year?

 

In 2013--you must know where this is headed--the Sox led with +197, next were the Cardinals with +187, and next were the Tigers with +172.

 

So, wild and crazy though this might sound, just maybe a team's net--runs scored minus runs against--is a decent barometer for postseason success.

 

This year the Guardians lead the MLB pack with +227 (a huge differential), then come the Yankees at +175 and the Dogers at +172, the Astros at +151, the Nationals at +144, the Diamondbacks at +143, and, finally, the Sox at +113.

 

And people want to dump Farrell because he failed to take this splendid hitting and pitching team all the way in 2017?

 

Our fundamentalists are no doubt wanting to say, "hold it. You forgot all those stupid boneheaded decisions by Farrell and his lassitude in preventing weak fundamentals on the basepaths and in the field. OSurely those are worth something because we all know those other mangers never make mistakes and their teams all play good, fundamental baseball all the freaking time. Surely that's worth at least 100 runs per season, which means the Sox really should be at +213. That's the difference between a Francona at the helm and a Farrell."

[mvp 78]

Tough crowd. In 2004, 2007, and 2013 the Sox had really good offenses and led the league (or near it) in runs scored, OPS, etc. Plenty of dingers too.

 

Indeed, in all three years the Sox led MLB in net runs scored vs. runs scored against--

 

In 2004 the Sox net was +180 and the Cardinals were the only ones better with + 187. Does anyone remember who we played in the WS?

 

In 2007 The Sox led MLB with + 210, and the next three were the Yankees at +191, the Guardians at +115, and the Rockies at +110. Does anyone remember we played in the ALCS and WS that year?

 

In 2013--you must know where this is headed--the Sox led with +197, next were the Cardinals with +187, and next were the Tigers with +172.

 

So, wild and crazy though this might sound, just maybe a team's net--runs scored minus runs against--is a decent barometer for postseason success.

 

This year the Guardians lead the MLB pack with +227 (a huge differential), then come the Yankees at +175 and the Dogers at +172, the Astros at +151, the Nationals at +144, the Diamondbacks at +143, and, finally, the Sox at +113.

 

And people want to dump Farrell because he failed to take this splendid hitting and pitching team all the way in 2017?

 

Our fundamentalists are no doubt wanting to say, "hold it. You forgot all those stupid boneheaded decisions by Farrell and his lassitude in preventing weak fundamentals on the basepaths and in the field. OSurely those are worth something because we all know those other mangers never make mistakes and their teams all play good, fundamental baseball all the freaking time. Surely that's worth at least 100 runs per season, which means the Sox really should be at +213. That's the difference between a Francona at the helm and a Farrell."

 

No, people want to fire him because this team has performed poorly and have played some really s*****, lacklaster and dumb baseball at times. This team was +184 just last year. Someone needs to be blamed for dropping over 60 runs with only losing one real player.

[TylerD]

No, people want to fire him because this team has performed poorly and have played some really s*****, lacklaster and dumb baseball at times. This team was +184 just last year. Someone needs to be blamed for dropping over 60 runs with only losing one real player.

 

Although Farrell has done some dumb things and I question some of the calls he makes on a regular basis. We did win a World Series under him and we are among the best teams pitching wise in the MLB. I obviously am not as against Farrell as a lot of the members are on this board....... The trouble with this team is we get a lot of our runs and hits in bulk. When this team hits a stride they are fantastic and among the best in baseball but when we cool down it's like they could give zero shits and are basically out there for a pay cheque. That is where Farrell as a manger needs to get them motivated to do their job. That is why I am waiting to see what happens in the Playoffs. A run to the World Series (especially beating a team like Cleveland) would do wonders for Farrell...... However another sweep in the first round is going to look extremely ugly on Farrell and I can't see him sticking around. Although at this point I really question who would do a better job than him. Managers like Francona are extremely rare. Teams are lucky to ever have a manager like that. We might lose Farrell and get something as bad or worse.

[illinoisredsox]

No, people want to fire him because this team has performed poorly and have played some really s*****, lacklaster and dumb baseball at times. This team was +184 just last year. Someone needs to be blamed for dropping over 60 runs with only losing one real player.

 

Travis Shaw was that important last season?

 

If anyone will go, it might be Chili Davis. Even allowing last season being career years for some, the drop off has been stunning. There's an old stat called runs produced,; it's runs scored + runs driven in - home runs (no double dipping); it's not perfect but in this case it is illustrative:

 

2016 2017 Difference

Betts 204 165 -39

Bradley Jr. 155 101 -45

Bogaerts 183 132 -51

Pedroia 164 97 -67

Ramirez 162 79 -83

 

Pedroia has missed a lot of time this year, so that explains some of that large number but I was surprised how few runs Hanley produced last year; this year has been a cliff dive.

[Maxbialystock]

No, people want to fire him because this team has performed poorly and have played some really s*****, lacklaster and dumb baseball at times. This team was +184 just last year. Someone needs to be blamed for dropping over 60 runs with only losing one real player.

 

Meh. I hope you realize the Sox only need to go 7-5 in the next 12 games to finish with 93 wins, same as last year.

 

And let's not forget that the guy we lost was one David Ortiz, the crucial link to the great offenses of 2004, 2007, and 2013. Ortiz helped win two WS for Francona--remember him?--and another for Farrell. Without him, the hitting has unquestionably suffered, and that is most noticeable in the team's slugging percentage and number of dingers. Last year we were #1 in MLB in slugging and #9 in dingers, this year #26 in slugging and #27 in dingers, but we are still 10th in scoring.

 

Are you saying the slugging and dingers dropped off the table because Farrell makes dumb decisions and doesn't stress fundamentals? That's a hard sell.

 

I think that 10th in scoring, still in the top 1/3 in MLB, suggests that crazy, boneheaded baserunning might be helping more than hurting and that Farrell has adjusted pretty well to the precipitous drop in hitting with power.

 

I would love to claim credit for Farrell for the overall improvement in defense--pitching plus fielding--because so far, with 12 games to go, the Sox have given up just 616 runs, over 100 below last year's 729. But I give most of the credit to DD for getting Sale and earlier Pom and Porcello and this year Fister. Plus Kimbrel, Reed, et al. The pitching is better for the very simple reason that the pitchers are better (Porcello being the exception of course).

 

You are probably more of an aficionado of baseball than I, which explains why you hate weak fundamentals and I, appallingly, tolerate them--if such they are. I won't at all disagree that sometimes Farrell's decisions don't work out. I have raged against them myself. But overall I think there is a pretty good rationale for all of them and admit he has better information and more experience than I.

[CTSox1]

So last night it's 5-1; and being a semi-old fart AND pissed that Fister got whacked; AND we're in a hole early again; I decide to call it a night. So I get up about 2 a.m. and check my phone. Sox 10 Oriholes 8. DAMN!!! After 15 innings and now this! What are they going to do next?!! Walk on water?!! Having faith is the only answer; because if you don't have it; they will rub your nose in it. As well they should!!

GO SOX!!!

[Kimmi]

At least the Twins made them work for it. More than can be said for the Birds Thursday through Saturday.

 

Matthew Kory‏Verified account @mattymatty2000

 

38 percent of the Yankees run differential this season (+174) has come versus the Orioles (+66)

 

That is just whack.

[Kimmi]

More likely than not, both teams will be in the thick of a playoff race in a given year. MLB should schedule them the last two weekends every year.

 

For the sake of my mental well being, I'm glad they don't do that every year.

[Spudboy]

Meh. I hope you realize the Sox only need to go 7-5 in the next 12 games to finish with 93 wins, same as last year.

 

And let's not forget that the guy we lost was one David Ortiz, the crucial link to the great offenses of 2004, 2007, and 2013. Ortiz helped win two WS for Francona--remember him?--and another for Farrell. Without him, the hitting has unquestionably suffered, and that is most noticeable in the team's slugging percentage and number of dingers. Last year we were #1 in MLB in slugging and #9 in dingers, this year #26 in slugging and #27 in dingers, but we are still 10th in scoring.

 

Are you saying the slugging and dingers dropped off the table because Farrell makes dumb decisions and doesn't stress fundamentals? That's a hard sell.

 

I think that 10th in scoring, still in the top 1/3 in MLB, suggests that crazy, boneheaded baserunning might be helping more than hurting and that Farrell has adjusted pretty well to the precipitous drop in hitting with power.

 

I would love to claim credit for Farrell for the overall improvement in defense--pitching plus fielding--because so far, with 12 games to go, the Sox have given up just 616 runs, over 100 below last year's 729. But I give most of the credit to DD for getting Sale and earlier Pom and Porcello and this year Fister. Plus Kimbrel, Reed, et al. The pitching is better for the very simple reason that the pitchers are better (Porcello being the exception of course).

 

You are probably more of an aficionado of baseball than I, which explains why you hate weak fundamentals and I, appallingly, tolerate them--if such they are. I won't at all disagree that sometimes Farrell's decisions don't work out. I have raged against them myself. But overall I think there is a pretty good rationale for all of them and admit he has better information and more experience than I.

 

Good post.

[dustcover]

So last night it's 5-1; and being a semi-old fart AND pissed that Fister got whacked; AND we're in a hole early again; I decide to call it a night. So I get up about 2 a.m. and check my phone. Sox 10 Oriholes 8. DAMN!!! After 15 innings and now this! What are they going to do next?!! Walk on water?!! Having faith is the only answer; because if you don't have it; they will rub your nose in it. As well they should!!

GO SOX!!!

 

Don't feel too bad, I'm a genuine old fart, and I too went to bed when the score got to 5-1. You'd think at my age I'd know better, but damn, it seems I'll never learn. I did however stay up the following night for the miraculous 1-0 win on a passed ball in extra innings. They truly are the cardiac kids!

[TylerD]

Meh. I hope you realize the Sox only need to go 7-5 in the next 12 games to finish with 93 wins, same as last year.

 

And let's not forget that the guy we lost was one David Ortiz, the crucial link to the great offenses of 2004, 2007, and 2013. Ortiz helped win two WS for Francona--remember him?--and another for Farrell. Without him, the hitting has unquestionably suffered, and that is most noticeable in the team's slugging percentage and number of dingers. Last year we were #1 in MLB in slugging and #9 in dingers, this year #26 in slugging and #27 in dingers, but we are still 10th in scoring.

 

Are you saying the slugging and dingers dropped off the table because Farrell makes dumb decisions and doesn't stress fundamentals? That's a hard sell.

 

I think that 10th in scoring, still in the top 1/3 in MLB, suggests that crazy, boneheaded baserunning might be helping more than hurting and that Farrell has adjusted pretty well to the precipitous drop in hitting with power.

 

I would love to claim credit for Farrell for the overall improvement in defense--pitching plus fielding--because so far, with 12 games to go, the Sox have given up just 616 runs, over 100 below last year's 729. But I give most of the credit to DD for getting Sale and earlier Pom and Porcello and this year Fister. Plus Kimbrel, Reed, et al. The pitching is better for the very simple reason that the pitchers are better (Porcello being the exception of course).

 

You are probably more of an aficionado of baseball than I, which explains why you hate weak fundamentals and I, appallingly, tolerate them--if such they are. I won't at all disagree that sometimes Farrell's decisions don't work out. I have raged against them myself. But overall I think there is a pretty good rationale for all of them and admit he has better information and more experience than I.

 

 

What it really boils down for me is I just don't think we can get anyone else that will do as good of a job as Farrell. Why take him out and replace him with somebody brand new who isn't familiar with the team. Our offense has been sluggish at the best of times this year there is no doubt about that But we also have a top 5 pitching rotation in the entire league as well as a pretty great defense. If Farrell and this team can make a nice playoff run and get through the Astros in the first round (which is who we will likely play) I don't see why Farrell would be taking a hike. A World Series championship 4 years ago and now back to back playoff appearances (this year without Ortiz) I am fine with Farrell. I can honestly say the man has made some questionable calls all year especially regarding pitchers staying in too long but that can happen with the best of managers and coaches.