A Realistic View at 2021: Part III

[Bellhorn04]

Barnes was coming off two straight walk off losses, no? Maybe give him a breather?

 

The old adage is you have to put the guy right back on the horse.

 

We don't really have the luxury of giving Barnes a rest.

[mvp 78]

And you know what the reaction would be if Perez gave up runs.

 

I'm not sure it would have been "bring in Barnes" since he was coming off 2 straight losses.

[mvp 78]

The old adage is you have to put the guy right back on the horse.

 

We don't really have the luxury of giving Barnes a rest.

 

They have a bunch of underused guys in the pen. Why have a 14 man staff if you aren't going to use them?

 

Not giving Barnes a rest from time to time is a mistake.

[mvp 78]

Isn't the old adage to not burn through your pen?

[notin]

The old adage is you have to put the guy right back on the horse.

 

We don't really have the luxury of giving Barnes a rest.

 

Sure, but maybe he can ride some horses in the 7th inning for a week...

[notin]

I think the Rockies will give him a QO and hope for a comp pick. If the Sox weren't going to offer better value than that, the Rockies were going to keep him. Same with Gray.

 

A QO to a guy on a one year $1mill contract?

 

Cron is having a good year, but I don't think he is doing anything that will merit him a 1700% raise. He seems to have seasons like this a lot recently and still gets non-tendered...

[mvp 78]

A QO to a guy on a one year $1mill contract?

 

Cron is having a good year, but I don't think he is doing anything that will merit him a 1700% raise. He seems to have seasons like this a lot recently and still gets non-tendered...

 

We'll see.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

But even then, in the three games in which Barnes collapsed, those were all games for a closer/high leverage reliever. So unless the Red Sox acquired Kimbrel, they likely would have all been sports for Barnes anyway.

 

We’ve now come full circle here. The one thing a lot of us wanted at the deadline was starting pitching. Ironically over the last few games that’s the one area probably doing the best. The lineup can’t seem to score after the fifth inning. And the bullpen has been an utter disaster the last few games..

 

I wanted a reliable reliever so Cora wouldn't have to burn out the key pen guys. Not Kimbrel, but one of the many decent arms that changed teams. This has been discussed ad mausoleum since last winter... when Bloom decided he wanted no part of relievers who cost $10 mil -- so he took Otto and a lotto tic for $8 mil.

 

And from the past, we've known all about Barnes on back-to-back days, in tie games, in two-inning stints, and really -- any closer in non-save situations. Now he is definitely cooked, physically and mentally. But I love how Cora thanks Bloom for Hansel and Gretel by instead choosing to throw Perez in late innings.

[Bellhorn04]

Isn't the old adage to not burn through your pen?

 

Barnes IP by month

 

Apr 14

May 10

Jun 11

Jul 8

Aug 3

 

Cora's been trying to conserve him the last couple of months.

[mvp 78]

Rios/Valdez haven't pitched since 8/5. They aren't world beaters, but are better than Davis/Robles.

[mvp 78]

Barnes IP by month

 

Apr 14

May 10

Jun 11

Jul 8

Aug 3

 

Cora's been trying to conserve him the last couple of months.

 

Barnes' career WHIP splits:

 

APR 1.02

MAY 1.21

JUN 1.46

JUL 1.12

AUG 1.68

SEP/OCT 1.37

[oldtimer]

So, where is the roster shakeup that Cora mentioned? To me, shakeup means sending someone (or two down or DFA) and bringing up some reserves, both field players and pitchers.

 

Question for tonight, will Verdugo be back? Another question. will Munoz join the team? He did have 3 hits last night at Worcester.

[notin]

I wanted a reliable reliever so Cora wouldn't have to burn out the key pen guys. Not Kimbrel, but one of the many decent arms that changed teams. This has been discussed ad mausoleum since last winter... when Bloom decided he wanted no part of relievers who cost $10 mil -- so he took Otto and a lotto tic for $8 mil.

 

And from the past, we've known all about Barnes on back-to-back days, in tie games, in two-inning stints, and really -- any closer in non-save situations. Now he is definitely cooked, physically and mentally. But I love how Cora thanks Bloom for Hansel and Gretel by instead choosing to throw Perez in late innings.

 

Ok so what reliable reliever?

 

As weird as it sounds, Hansel Robles was actually one of the better relievers moved at the deadline. His 2021 hasn’t been stellar, but he was a 1.4 fWAR reliever in 2019. Some of the better ones moved went for packages the Sox simply could not match with their mediocre farm system. Ricardo Rodriguez went for a 23yo MLB pitcher with 5 years of control. Ian Kennedy a as part of a package that brought back, among others, Spencer Howard, who not only has MLB experience, but was also BA#27 before the season,

 

Yimi Garcia? I’d have been ok with him, but let’s not pretend he has some of career that instills confidence. Kendall Graveman is having a good year, but it’s his first season as a full time reliever and the guy is a walking arm injury (and could we really top Abraham Toro?) Diego Castillo went for what’s dirt cheap package, but no way in Hell was Tampa going to trade him to Boston.

 

I wanted more, too. But would you have traded Casas for another reliever? The price tag for a lot of these guys was more than expected and more than a lot of prospects in the Sox farm seem to be worth in the eyes of other GMs. And it may be a long time before a Sox GM can trade another highly ranked first base prospects for a relief pitcher again.

 

Maybe we could have gotten Joakim Soria, but really he strikes me as a guy people get and still pine for someone else…

[dgalehouse]

Barnes definitely could use a breather. Keep him down for a few days . This is a long grind after last year's short season. And as an All Star , he didn't even get the the All Star break to re-charge. As I have said so often , " Closin" ain't easy." Give him a break and see if he can bounce back.

[User Name]

They should have acquired a quality arm at the deadline. This rotation barely gives the team any innings. It's common sense that the bullpen would eventually wear down as a unit.

[mvp 78]

So, where is the roster shakeup that Cora mentioned? To me, shakeup means sending someone (or two down or DFA) and bringing up some reserves, both field players and pitchers.

 

Question for tonight, will Verdugo be back? Another question. will Munoz join the team? He did have 3 hits last night at Worcester.

 

Verdugo will be back tomorrow.

 

Munoz may come up to replace someone, but he's not a high ceiling guy. He could be better than Marwin with the bat, but his glove is worse. He's not going to light the world on fire though. Duran, Santana, Cordero, et al all put up massive numbers at the launching pad in Worcester. I don't know if Munoz' bat will translate

[mvp 78]

They should have acquired a quality arm at the deadline. This rotation barely gives the team any innings. It's common sense that the bullpen would eventually wear down as a unit.

 

We'll just have to take Bloom's word for it that the price at the deadline was cost prohibitive and there were no other arms to get.

[notin]

We'll just have to take Bloom's word for it that the price at the deadline was cost prohibitive and there were no other arms to get.

 

Did Bloom say that?

 

I know I’ve said similar stuff for the past 11 days. Just didn’t know Bloom did…

[a700hitter]

We'll just have to take Notin’s and Illinois Sox’s word for it that the price at the deadline was cost prohibitive and there were no other arms to get.

For TalkSox members, I have taken the liberty of correcting your post

[mvp 78]

Did Bloom say that?

 

I know I’ve said similar stuff for the past 11 days. Just didn’t know Bloom did…

 

Apparently he did so on the Section 10 podcast the other day. I haven't listened to it yet, but will do so over the next day or so.

[mvp 78]

For TalkSox members, I have taken the liberty of correcting your post

 

Apparently Bloom did so on the Section 10 podcast the other day. I haven't listened to it yet, but will do so over the next day or so.

 

Don't make me tap the sign again.

[notin]

Apparently he did so on the Section 10 podcast the other day. I haven't listened to it yet, but will do so over the next day or so.

 

Good. Because I won’t listen at all…

[User Name]

Ah, some things never change.

[a700hitter]

Apparently Bloom did so on the Section 10 podcast the other day. I haven't listened to it yet, but will do so over the next day or so.

 

Don't make me tap the sign again.

I’ll not take anyone’s word, including Bloom’s, that reinforcing the team was cost prohibitive. It was the most active Trading Deadline in memory. He could have done something.

[mvp 78]

Good. Because I won’t listen at all…

 

I'll take one for the team.

[mvp 78]

I’ll take anyone’s word, including Bloom’s, that reinforcing the team was cost prohibitive. It was the most expensive Trading Deadline in memory. He could have done something, but his hands were tied by ownership's refusal to go over the luxury tax.

 

Noted.

[a700hitter]

Noted.

He could have spent prospects. The Yankees took on zero salary.

[notin]

He could have spent prospects. The Yankees took on zero salary.

 

It was disappointing, no doubt. And he could/should have done better, just how much better is the real question.

 

I’ve speculated he could have added someone from the Jon Lester tier of starters, but is that really any better? Lester has been shellacked in St. Louis almost as bad s as he was getting shellacked in Washington…

[FredLynn]

It was disappointing, no doubt. And he could/should have done better, just how much better is the real question.

 

I’ve speculated he could have added someone from the Jon Lester tier of starters, but is that really any better? Lester has been shellacked in St. Louis almost as bad s as he was getting shellacked in Washington…

 

Odd choice, getting just Schwarber. Maybe Bloom doesn't see this team as competitive this year and is planning for bigger things in the future.

[notin]

Odd choice, getting just Schwarber. Maybe Bloom doesn't see this team as competitive this year and is planning for bigger things in the future.

 

Then why trade the team’s #9 prospect for a guy on a one year deal with a mutual option?