7/3 at A’s

[moonslav59]

And in the playoffs, for some reason, they fold up like a cheap tent. Haven't been to a World Series since 1990. Not jealous.

 

Maybe the playoffs are not the lucky crapshoot many feel it is.

[Bellhorn04]

Maybe the playoffs are not the lucky crapshoot many feel it is.

 

I actually started a thread here once called 'Are the playoffs really a crapshoot?'

 

It's an intriguing question.

[moonslav59]

I actually started a thread here once called 'Are the playoffs really a crapshoot?'

 

It's an intriguing question.

 

Some champs can be chalked up to luck but the better teams win more often than not.

[TylerD]

And in the playoffs, for some reason, they fold up like a cheap tent. Haven't been to a World Series since 1990. Not jealous.

 

So true!! Guess good management can only take you so far. If you don’t have any true talent you don’t go too far.

[SoxHop]

This team is totally broken. This is not a championship team. How the heck are they are in first.

 

But.

 

I look at these other teams, and they are just not as good. They are even more broken.

 

I think the 2004, 2007, 2013 and gosh help up if the 2018 played this team they would wipe the floor with our current team.

 

I'm not sure what to sum it up to, covid hangover, luck.... I have no idea.

 

But dang, this has been a fun season.

[moonslav59]

This team is totally broken. This is not a championship team. How the heck are they are in first.

 

But.

 

I look at these other teams, and they are just not as good. They are even more broken.

 

I think the 2004, 2007, 2013 and gosh help up if the 2018 played this team they would wipe the floor with our current team.

 

I'm not sure what to sum it up to, covid hangover, luck.... I have no idea.

 

But dang, this has been a fun season.

 

Exactly, and even at the start of the season, it was clear every AL team had some major issues or question marks. That is what offered us the best hope.

 

Someone may yet take hold and show dominance, but so far, [we've had about 6 teams look like the best of the AL, at some point, this year, including the Sox a few times.

 

You have to ask, why the hell not?

 

Who else looks like they have a clearly better shot at making the WS?

 

Winning the WS might be harder. The top 3-4 NL teams looks much better than us.

[jung]

And in the playoffs, for some reason, they fold up like a cheap tent. Haven't been to a World Series since 1990. Not jealous.

 

Oakland never has enough good players and ends up with guys that should get limited playing time at best simply playing too often and in too many positions. They do have a park that is tough to play in for opposing teams as the foul ground is huge and there is no short OF. All three Ofer's have to cover a good bit of ground. Most teams are not set up for that. Ours isn't either.

 

The A's usually have enough pitching to take advantage of the Coliseum not being a hitter's ballpark. At any rate whereas Fenway takes away from hitters as much as it gives, the Coliseum is all take and no give.

 

The Oakland side of the Bay has lost so much with regard to pro sports teams and they might just lose the A's too. MLB is tired of the Coliseum and nobody seems to be stepping forward to build a new park for them.

[SoxHop]

Exactly, and even at the start of the season, it was clear every AL team had some major issues or question marks. That is what offered us the best hope.

 

Someone may yet take hold and show dominance, but so far, [we've had about 6 teams look like the best of the AL, at some point, this year, including the Sox a few times.

 

You have to ask, why the hell not?

 

Who else looks like they have a clearly better shot at making the WS?

 

Winning the WS might be harder. The top 3-4 NL teams looks much better than us.

 

Moon. I made this yesterday. It was awesome. I was just going to make rajas, but bought chorizo and had tortillas so I did the whole thing in the vid.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssAvAjyRG9M

[Maxbialystock]

Well said.

 

No options looked very good, last night.

 

We nearly pulled it off, last night. I have no issues with Cora at all. He’s the reason we are where we are.

 

I get the frustration a loss can bring, but I feel like much of this is over the top.

 

Indeed. The complaint about using Andriese in the 12th ignores the fact that the Sox offense only scored enough to get to extra innings because of two unearned runs. Then in the 10th and 11th Workman miraculously (he was lucky) held the A's scoreless, but the Sox offense also didn't score despite starting both innings with a man on 2b, etc.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

I don’t know if he is a betting man, but he is a known cheater. And that speaks to his character. Cheating by a cheater is never an isolated incident. I would not have hired him knowing that, but that said, he is doing an excellent job with this team.

 

Still using the c-word after the latest sticky stuff "scandal" affecting every team? By now, is it really so hard to accept that anyone labeled a ballplayer, hitter, pitcher, manager, coach or front office employee -- including Manfred's MLB office -- is all part of the same culture... and thus, same hypocrisy?

[TylerD]

This team is totally broken. This is not a championship team. How the heck are they are in first.

 

But.

 

I look at these other teams, and they are just not as good. They are even more broken.

 

I think the 2004, 2007, 2013 and gosh help up if the 2018 played this team they would wipe the floor with our current team.

 

I'm not sure what to sum it up to, covid hangover, luck.... I have no idea.

 

But dang, this has been a fun season.

 

Our bullpen is almost perfect. Workman was so good last night. Send Andriese down and bring back Valdez. That guy single handedly costs us games.

[SoxHop]

Our bullpen is almost perfect. Workman was so good last night. Send Andriese down and bring back Valdez. That guy single handedly costs us games.

 

This bullpen has been lights out. Maybe it's been the best aspect of team. Not only do they save games from the 4th inning on, they save all of us super high blood pressure and excessive drinking. We can fine tune it by shitcanning Andriese.

 

But...... Give me more Sawamura...!!!! All Day all Night....... if that dude aint the drunken samurai chef of bullpen I don't know who is. I got a hankering for a split fastballs and Sawamura is the answer

[SPLENDIDSPLINTER]

With Andriese, unlike many relievers who will give the team a good performance one day and a not-so-good performance the next, the SOX know exactly what they're going to get, or more accurately, not going to get, when he's called from the pen.

Hopefully, Bloom can accept that he made a mistake and remove this liability from the team.

[SoxHop]

With Andriese, unlike many relievers who will give the team a good performance one day and a not-so-good performance the next, the SOX know exactly what they're going to get, or more accurately, not going to get, when he's called from the pen.

Hopefully, Bloom can accept that he made a mistake and remove this liability from the team.

 

That experiment is over with. We know Andriese is dangerous territory. Wish I could could rub a lantern and a lights out bullpen would appear, but I'm not that talented.

 

Calling mr. Sale.

[mvp 78]

I actually started a thread here once called 'Are the playoffs really a crapshoot?'

 

It's an intriguing question.

 

Not entirely, but yes it’s an intriguing question.

[Maxbialystock]

Mathematically, playoffs are a crap shoot because all the teams have winning percentages around .600, that is, from .550 to .650. If they were played now, the highest winning percentage would be the Giants .634, and the lowest would be the Rays .566.

 

And that's a pretty small shot group--all of them win about 6 out of 10 games, so "upsets" should be no surprise.

 

However, I think history says that pitching can take over in the postseason if only because the rotations and bullpens get rest days every 2 or 3 days. So a team with, say, three superb starters and 4 solid guys in the bullpen can expect to be more successful than teams that don't have pitching that good. Good pitching usually, not always, negates good hitting.

[a700hitter]

Still using the c-word after the latest sticky stuff "scandal" affecting every team? By now, is it really so hard to accept that anyone labeled a ballplayer, hitter, pitcher, manager, coach or front office employee -- including Manfred's MLB office -- is all part of the same culture... and thus, same hypocrisy?

Good point.

[dgalehouse]

Mathematically, playoffs are a crap shoot because all the teams have winning percentages around .600, that is, from .550 to .650. If they were played now, the highest winning percentage would be the Giants .634, and the lowest woulddd be the Rays .566.

 

And that's a pretty small shot group--all of them win about 6 out of 10 games, so "upsets" should be no surprise.

 

However, I think history says that pitching can take over in the postseason if only because the rotations and bullpens get rest days every 2 or 3 days. So a team with, say, three superb starters and 4 solid guys in the bullpen can expect to be more successful than teams that don't have pitching that good. Good pitching usually, not always, negates good hitting.

 

In the playoffs, all of the teams are good, but some are better than others. All of the teams have a chance to win , but not the same chance. Even in a crapshoot, there are probabilities. You will roll eight more often than ten , etc. So , saying the playoffs are a crapshoot has some validity, but that doesn't mean every team has an equal chance at the brass ring.

[iortiz]

I don’t know if he is a betting man, but he is a known cheater. And that speaks to his character. Cheating by a cheater is never an isolated incident. I would not have hired him knowing that, but that said, he is doing an excellent job with this team.

 

I couldn’t catch the whole game and its details because I was in a party, but time to time I watched it. I think bell said Andriese was the only option available at that point. If that’s true, I apologize to Cora otherwise it wouldn’t have made sense sending Andirese in that situation.

 

Said that, I agree with you compadre. Probably I wouldn’t have hired him but he has made an excellent job thus far. Hopefully he learned of his mistakes and move on clean this time because he has showed he is an excellent manager.

[moonslav59]

I couldn’t catch the whole game and its details because I was in a party, but time to time I watched it. I think bell said Andriese was the only option available at that point. If that’s true, I apologize to Cora otherwise it wouldn’t have made sense sending Andirese in that situation.

 

Said that, I agree with you compadre. Probably I wouldn’t have hired him but he has made an excellent job thus far. Hopefully he learned of his mistakes and move on clean this time because he has showed he is an excellent manager.

 

It was mentioned several times that Valdez was not on the 26 man roster, and all that was left was Workman for his 3rd inning, a starter or Andriese.

 

[iortiz]

It was mentioned several times that Valdez was not on the 26 man roster, and all that was left was Workman for his 3rd inning, a starter or Andriese.

 

I couldn’t follow the thread as I would have liked moon. My bad!

[moonslav59]

I couldn’t follow the thread as I would have liked moon. My bad!

 

No prob. I might have misremembered who was there at the end.

[mvp 78]

With a 9-14 record (and a -14 run differential) against AL West teams the Red Sox need to overcome their deficiencies to beat good clubs.

 

What a joke.

[moonslav59]

What a joke.

 

Like the only games that define us are against the ALW.

[mvp 78]

Like the only games that define us are against the ALW.

 

And they just won the series in OAK. He made the post after the one loss.

[moonslav59]

And they just won the series in OAK. He made the post after the one loss.

 

We lost to the Rangers.

 

We must suck.

[Maxbialystock]

I couldn’t follow the thread as I would have liked moon. My bad!

 

Well said.

 

If nothing else defines talksox, perhaps this thread does. It's the longest--or one of the longest--game threads this season and is about a game the Sox lost after winning 8 straight and having the best W-L percentage in the AL and a good lead in the AL East.

 

On some pages there is genuine rage directed at Cora, Andriese, et al because the Sox, thanks to errors and unearned runs given up by the A's, had a chance to steal a win, but ultimately could not because, well, the bullpen just ran out of gas.

 

Yesterday Pivetta pitched a 7 inning gem and the Sox won a thriller on a GIDP by Devers, 1-0. 17 pages.

 

None of the 8 game threads in the winning streak got more than 20 pages.

 

In short, talksox contributors find winning boring. It's much more fun to argue about why a game was lost and whose fault it was.

Edited July 5, 2021 by Maxbialystock

[iortiz]

Well said.

 

If nothing else defines talksox, perhaps this thread does. It's the longest--or one of the longest--game threads this season and is about a game the Sox lost after winning 8 straight and having the best W-L percentage in the AL and a good lead in the AL East.

 

On some pages there is genuine rage directed at Cora, Andriese, et al because the Sox, thanks to errors and unearned runs given up by the A's, had a chance to steal a win, but ultimately could not because, well, the bullpen just ran out of gas.

 

Yesterday Pivetta pitched a 7 inning gem and the Sox won a thriller on a GIDP by Devers, 1-0. 17 pages.

 

None of the 8 game threads in the winning streak got more than 20 pages.

 

In short, talksox contributors find winning boring. It's much more fun to argue about why a game was lost and whose fault it was.

 

Speaking for myself I think I contribute the same way regardless they are losing or winning.

 

In Saturday's game I was wrong because as it has been said, Andriese was the only option available, and I wasn't aware of that because I wasn't following neither the game nor the thread as I would have liked because I was in a family bbq which turned into a party lol. My ver bad and I apologize.

 

Said that I think I've been very supportive and very positive regarding the team since the season started. Even when they lose which is not every often I take most of the times the positives. Geez I predicted we were going to win this series after sweeping KC because I didn't see the A's as strong as they were when we faced them in Boston.

 

I haven't been this way in other years specially in Ben's tenure and few others. This year I'm very confident.

 

I love Bloom and Cora running this team. I have said this several times.

 

IMO Game threads are reactionary as hell. I have no proem with that and no big deal at all to me. I have said it before, they are like being in a bar with your buddies watching the games and sharing a couple of beers. Of course when they lose specially in dramatic fashion and when a L could be fairly avoided by a move coming off the bench or a play, it always will be magnified. This is a not Sox fandom thing. This happens with every team. I follow the NYY tweeter account. The bashing right now there is getting out of line and by a mile compared with what we have posted here when the Sox suck lol.

[Maxbialystock]

Speaking for myself I think I contribute the same way regardless they are losing or winning.

 

In Saturday's game I was wrong because as it has been said, Andriese was the only option available, and I wasn't aware of that because I wasn't following neither the game nor the thread as I would have liked because I was in a family bbq which turned into a party lol. My ver bad and I apologize.

 

Said that I think I've been very supportive and very positive regarding the team since the season started. Even when they lose which is not every often I take most of the times the positives. Geez I predicted we were going to win this series after sweeping KC because I didn't see the A's as strong as they were when we faced them in Boston.

 

I haven't been this way in other years specially in Ben's tenure and few others. This year I'm very confident.

 

I love Bloom and Cora running this team. I have said this several times.

 

IMO Game threads are reactionary as hell. I have no proem with that and no big deal at all to me. I have said it before, they are like being in a bar with your buddies watching the games and sharing a couple of beers. Of course when they lose specially in dramatic fashion and when a L could be fairly avoided by a move coming off the bench or a play, it always will be magnified. This is a not Sox fandom thing. This happens with every team. I follow the NYY tweeter account. The bashing right now there is getting out of line and by a mile compared with what we have posted here when the Sox suck lol.

 

Great final paragraph. Tough for Yankee fans. Maybe like us in 2019 after that incredible 2018 season.