A Realistic View at 2019: Part I

[Nick]

Erod has developed a wipeout slider. he will be the Ace of the staff before this season is over. this will go down as one of the best trades of all time. thanks Ben!

 

Thank you Ben, thank you Theo. I don't care who gets credit. As Moon has said often, it would have been great had we signed Miller as a free agent after the season. Little payback to colonel Clink,,,,I meant Showalter.

[moonslav59]

It all ended up working out fine. We got Porcello for Lester. Kimbrel carried the closer load for 3 years. Pom gave us one decent season, and even Kelly & Hembree pulled their weight in the playoffs.

 

DD got us a ring. Ben got us a ring. Theo got us two rings. Their previous GM(s) helped set the table, but all made signature moves that led to the 4 rings in 15 years.

[d-money]

Hope to see ricky porcello bounce back and have a better year especially with his location.

[harmony]

I have faith in you. It's Bryce Brentz that I have no faith in...

And Bryce Brentz homers:

 

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[moonslav59]

No RP'er Signings planned.

 

Only $4.75M below the max penalty line.

 

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2019/02/dombrowski-red-sox-unlikely-to-sign-additional-relievers.html

[Kimmi]

I did say it was premature. Twice...

 

Will Chavis be the recipient of the ST Award (whose name escapes me at the moment) this year?

[notin]

Will Chavis be the recipient of the ST Award (whose name escapes me at the moment) this year?

 

The Jeff Bailey Award. And he is the early front runner...

[jacksonianmarch]

No RP'er Signings planned.

 

Only $4.75M below the max penalty line.

 

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2019/02/dombrowski-red-sox-unlikely-to-sign-additional-relievers.html

 

They’re going to cross it again. It’s just gonna happen. They’re going to be in the hunt again with huge holes in the pen and probably a hole cropping up in the rotation or lineup that’ll need filling and the added salary will drive them past the final threshold again

[moonslav59]

They’re going to cross it again. It’s just gonna happen. They’re going to be in the hunt again with huge holes in the pen and probably a hole cropping up in the rotation or lineup that’ll need filling and the added salary will drive them past the final threshold again

 

If they trade Swihart, they knock off $910K and add maybe $560K. That puts them over $5M to spend at the deadline. Since the cost is pro-rated, orf you get the team trading to take on salary, like we did last summer, you can actually get good pro-rated talent for $5M- maybe even two good RP'ers.

 

I think Eovaldi cost us just $2M last year. I could be wrong, but I think the Rays even paid part of his deal- or was that the Jays with Pearce?

 

I'm not saying we can repeat picking up 2 Eovaldi's this July, but my point is, $4-5M can go a long way in July.

[notin]

They’re going to cross it again. It’s just gonna happen. They’re going to be in the hunt again with huge holes in the pen and probably a hole cropping up in the rotation or lineup that’ll need filling and the added salary will drive them past the final threshold again

 

 

Or.... crazy thought here ... Dombrowski is doing what he almost always does with the bullpen and it might actually work out. It has before.

 

It’s also failed him, too. Mixed results. But part of any set of mixed results is a good mix...

[Slasher9]

with huge holes in the pen and probably a hole cropping up in the rotation or lineup that’ll need filling and the added salary will drive them past the final threshold again

keep on trollin'

ps - yankees had to watch the Sox celebrate a playoff series win on yankees stadium infield a few months ago.

[moonslav59]

I'm not thrilled with our pen. I wish we had better.

 

That being said, we have a lot of pitchers with promise- some with short glimpses of greatness in the recent past. I think there's a significant chance we find a mix of 6 or 7 pitchers that do what is needed to get the job done. Of course, there is a significant chance our pen struggles, and maybe we barely find 3-4 guys who can be good set-up guys let alone a closer and 2-3 decent set-up guys.

 

Another problem is that we may need to go through quite a few pitchers to find one who gets the job done. That could pile too many loses up before we actually find the 6 or 7 we need. I'm hopeful, the first ones we try will be a success, or we don't need to burn through 5 guys to find the 6th or 7th pen guy that can get the job done. We may not be able to wait until the deadline, if this happens.

 

That's the downside look.

 

Now, a little more optimism.... I'm pretty confident Barnes and Brasier can be decent to very good set-up men, and maybe one can close. If we find out neither can close, we may have to trade for a closer sooner than July.

 

The next set of RP'ers should produce 2-3 decent to good set-up men (maybe 4):

Wright

Hembree

Workman

Thornburg

Johnson

 

That's the first 7 we try. There's some hope in the next few:

Velazquez

Poyner

Walden

Lakins

Brewer

Shawaryn

 

Longer shots might surprise:

Durbin Feltman

Erasmo Rodriguez

Zach Putnam

Domingo Tapia

Josh Smith

Ryan Weber

Dan Runzler

 

I realize every team has numbers (quantity of promise or hopes). I realize many of these on the list are long shots. I realize going through 20 guys to find 7 maybe cause us to lose the division, but for some reason, I'm not all that pessimistic about our opening day pen. I think we can do well enough to get to July and maybe get a boost that will carry us to another ring. (Well, maybe "carry us" is going too far, but not drag us down enough to lose the division and championship.)

"

Edited February 26, 2019 by moonslav59

[notin]

 

Another problem is that we may need to go through quite a few pitchers to find one who gets the job done. That could pile too many loses up before we actually find the 6 or 7 we need. I'm hopeful, the first ones we try will be a success, or we don't need to burn through 5 guys to find the 6th or 7th pen guy that can get the job done. We may not be able to wait until the deadline, if this happens.

 

 

Well, there's a pretty good chance Cora isn't using the 6th or 7th guy in the bullpen in high leverage situations too often in the early going...

[jacksonianmarch]

Every guy in the pen will have a chance to win or lose a game. Last year, we had a damn good pen, but Chasen Shreve found his way into 40 games before the ASB. Your last guy is going to be needed, especially after an extra inning affair or a close game where the starter exits early.

[moonslav59]

Well, there's a pretty good chance Cora isn't using the 6th or 7th guy in the bullpen in high leverage situations too often in the early going...

 

Yes, and if the top 4 or 5 work out and don't get hurt, they never will get a chance.

[notin]

Every guy in the pen will have a chance to win or lose a game. Last year, we had a damn good pen, but Chasen Shreve found his way into 40 games before the ASB. Your last guy is going to be needed, especially after an extra inning affair or a close game where the starter exits early.

 

It's not about the number of games. Shreve pitched in 60 games for the Yankees last year, but only 14 of them involved him coming into a game protecting a 2 run lead or less or in a tie game. And in most of those, he came in earlier in the game. Or in extra innings.

 

He was only credited with facing 30 plate appearances in high leverage situations last year.

 

Not every bullpen outing is protecting a one run lead in the 8th inning...

[moonslav59]

Every guy in the pen will have a chance to win or lose a game. Last year, we had a damn good pen, but Chasen Shreve found his way into 40 games before the ASB. Your last guy is going to be needed, especially after an extra inning affair or a close game where the starter exits early.

 

Here's how many PAs our pen guys got last year in "Late & Close" situations:

 

178 Kimbrel

162 Barnes (almost as much as CK and more than Kelly

149 Kelly

 

100 Hembree

 

44 Brasier (did not join team until July 9th)

39 Workman

 

29 CSmith

23 Cuevas

21 Poyner

 

12 Thornburg

 

 

High Leverage PAs (Starters & RP'ers)

136 Kimbrel

130 Porcello

 

112 Price

102 Kelly

99 Barnes

 

78 Sale

76 ERod

76 Hembree

 

52 Johnson

48 Velazquez

47 Wright

47 Pomeranz

42 Eovaldi

 

26 Brasier

26 Workman

21 Smith

21 Cuevas

13 Poyner

 

9 Beeks, 7 Thornburg, 4 Beeks, 2 Walden

[jacksonianmarch]

The thing you’re missing is that a guy coming into the game in the 5th down 1 who makes it down 3 or 4 does just as much damage as the guy who comes in down 1 in the 8th or 9th and blows it open. Shreve was usually our first guy out of the pen if our starter couldn’t make it through 5. While he may not have lost many games and maybe he didn’t regularly come in to secure a win, he did come in plenty of times to try and keep a deficit close and failed.

[moonslav59]

The thing you’re missing is that a guy coming into the game in the 5th down 1 who makes it down 3 or 4 does just as much damage as the guy who comes in down 1 in the 8th or 9th and blows it open. Shreve was usually our first guy out of the pen if our starter couldn’t make it through 5. While he may not have lost many games and maybe he didn’t regularly come in to secure a win, he did come in plenty of times to try and keep a deficit close and failed.

 

Yes, the 5-7th best RP'ers in a pen are still often called into close games. We have a depth of mediocre to promising RP'ers. That may be the only thing that saves us.

[notin]

The thing you’re missing is that a guy coming into the game in the 5th down 1 who makes it down 3 or 4 does just as much damage as the guy who comes in down 1 in the 8th or 9th and blows it open. Shreve was usually our first guy out of the pen if our starter couldn’t make it through 5. While he may not have lost many games and maybe he didn’t regularly come in to secure a win, he did come in plenty of times to try and keep a deficit close and failed.

 

 

Last year, Shreve pitched only 2 games for the Yankees where he entered the game because the starter didn’t complete the fifth inning and only got hit hard in one of those games. The year before, he had 9 such games and was ineffective twice. Let’s not exaggerate his failures too much...

[a700hitter]

[h=2]Yankees Hire Andy Pettitte As Special Advisor[/h]By Steve Adams and Jeff Todd | February 25, 2019 at 5:39pm CDT

The Yankees announced Monday that they’ve hired Andy Pettitte as a special advisor to general manager Brian Cashman.

As is often the case with such appointments, Pettitte’s responsibilities are somewhat nebulous. The long-time MLB lefty will “help coach both the physical and mental side of being a champion and pitching in New York,” Cashman told reporters today (including MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch).

It seems the initial plan is for Pettitte to ease into things with the Yankees organization while remaining a resident of Texas. His new role will not interfere with his duties as the pitching coach for a Houston-area high school, where he works alongside head coach Lance Berkman — making for rather a star-studded staff.

Pettitte says he passed up a chance to join former Yanks teammate Jorge Posada as a special assistant with Derek Jeter’s Marlins. Posada recently signed on in Miami, where he resides. While that offer held its own appeal, Pettitte says his arrangement with the Yankees “has been in the works for five years” — ever since he wrapped up his 18-year MLB career after the 2013 season.

His first workshop will be on using a syringe and how to properly find a vein.

[jacksonianmarch]

Steroids are injected in depo fashion, missing a vein is important, that’s why the injection is usually into the buttocks

[kenmeister]

Steroids are injected in depo fashion, missing a vein is important, that’s why the injection is usually into the buttocks

 

That was just a vitamin B-12 shot...

[a700hitter]

Steroids are injected in depo fashion, missing a vein is important, that’s why the injection is usually into the buttocks

My mistake, his first workshop will be on how to use a syringe and the importance of not hitting a vein.

[a700hitter]

That was just a vitamin B-12 shot...

And he prayed before he took the shot.

[BillyWilliams]

His first workshop will be on using a syringe and how to properly find a vein.

 

Seems like the sox were the frontrunners in educating proper steroid use........

 

Former Boston Red Sox player and current analyst and reporter for Comcast SportsNet New England, Lou Merloni, claimed last week that Sox management taught players how to use steroids during his tenure with the team.

 

"I'm in spring training, and I got an 8:30-9:00 meeting in the morning," said Merloni, 38, a native of Framingham, Massachusetts and graduate of Providence College who played five seasons on Yawkey Way as an infielder from 1998-2003.

 

"And I walk into that office, and this happened while I was with the Boston Red Sox before this last regime, I'm sitting in the meeting. There's a doctor up there and he's talking about steroids, and everyone was like 'Here we go, we're gonna sit here and get the whole thing—they're bad for you.' No. He spins it and says 'You know what, if you take steroids and sit on the couch all winter long, you can actually get stronger than someone who works out clean, if you're going to take steroids, one cycle won't hurt you, abusing steroids it will.'”

 

WEEI-AM’s “Big Show” co-host continued, “He sat there for one hour and told us how to properly use steroids while I'm with the Boston Red Sox, sitting there with the rest of the organization, and after this I said 'What the heck was that?' And everybody on the team was like 'What was that?' And the response we got was 'Well, we know guys are taking it, so we want to make sure they're taking it the right way'... Where did that come from? That didn't come from the Players Association."

 

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/175226-the-majority-of-boston-red-sox-used-steroids

[a700hitter]

Seems like the sox were the frontrunners in educating proper steroid use........

 

Former Boston Red Sox player and current analyst and reporter for Comcast SportsNet New England, Lou Merloni, claimed last week that Sox management taught players how to use steroids during his tenure with the team.

 

"I'm in spring training, and I got an 8:30-9:00 meeting in the morning," said Merloni, 38, a native of Framingham, Massachusetts and graduate of Providence College who played five seasons on Yawkey Way as an infielder from 1998-2003.

 

"And I walk into that office, and this happened while I was with the Boston Red Sox before this last regime, I'm sitting in the meeting. There's a doctor up there and he's talking about steroids, and everyone was like 'Here we go, we're gonna sit here and get the whole thing—they're bad for you.' No. He spins it and says 'You know what, if you take steroids and sit on the couch all winter long, you can actually get stronger than someone who works out clean, if you're going to take steroids, one cycle won't hurt you, abusing steroids it will.'”

 

WEEI-AM’s “Big Show” co-host continued, “He sat there for one hour and told us how to properly use steroids while I'm with the Boston Red Sox, sitting there with the rest of the organization, and after this I said 'What the heck was that?' And everybody on the team was like 'What was that?' And the response we got was 'Well, we know guys are taking it, so we want to make sure they're taking it the right way'... Where did that come from? That didn't come from the Players Association."

 

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/175226-the-majority-of-boston-red-sox-used-steroids

And Lou Merloni has not been hired as a special adviser to the Red Sox, nor has he been outed as a user. Pettitte on the other hand was a cheater and a hypocrite.

[BillyWilliams]

And Lou Merloni has not been hired as a special adviser to the Red Sox, nor has he been outed as a user. Pettitte on the other hand was a cheater and a hypocrite.

 

So you are saying merloni is a liar and the sox didn't hire doctors to teach the players proper steroid use?

[Bellhorn04]

So you are saying merloni is a liar and the sox didn't hire doctors to teach the players proper steroid use?

 

I'll assume Merloni was telling the truth.

 

He's talking about one session that he attended, and he was with the team 5 years or so. And the way he described it the players were all going WTF was that? after it was over. Sounds like it wasn't exactly a regular occurrence.

[BillyWilliams]

I'll assume Merloni was telling the truth.

 

He's talking about one session that he attended, and he was with the team 5 years or so. And the way he described it the players were all going WTF was that? after it was over. Sounds like it wasn't exactly a regular occurrence.

 

Which doesn't change my point.

 

The sox were at the forefront of this........