A Realistic View at 2023: Part I

[moonslav59]

JBJ also want the entirety of that trade.

 

We won’t ever know all the logic that went into that trade, but it’s not ridiculous think they wanted JBJ for some defense and liked Hamilton and Binelas as players they hoped to get for a player who was released one year earlier but played well enough to earn a significant raise.

 

If Bloom wanted to build something of a farm system, trading MLB players at the suspected peak is going to happen. And if they had any designs on someone like Suzuki, the positions certainly made sense…

 

I'm sure it made sense to Bloom and likely a few others, maybe yes men. He must have liked Binela and or Hamilton more than just about anyone else. He might have also thought or hoped JBJ would rebound and or Renfroe would regress, but many here felt he was going to be wrong on 3 fronts:

 

1. More money for JBJ than Renfroe

2. JBJ was not going to bounce back.

3. The prospects were not promising enough to be worth it. (This could still change.)

[Bellhorn04]

I'm thinking...

 

Taillon

Nate

Quintana

Kluber

(Heaney seems to be close to signing with the Jays, I think.)

 

Is he still looking for the next Martin Perez- the 2022 version?

 

Looking for posts in the offseason thread about Eovaldi. Here's one from moon.

[Bellhorn04]

Remaining Free Agents (as ranked by MLBTR):

 

I predict we get in RED

 

2. Correa (My top pick, but I seriously doubt we will be a final 3 bidder)

4. Bogey (Probably our best hope for a top 20 signing, now.)

5. Swanson (Outside chance, if we miss out on Bogey)

6. Rodon (nope)

9. Nimmo (nope)

10. Contreras (I hope not, but if we aren't going to spend anywhere else, I'd rather get him than just Adrus, Conforto, Nate and Hill)

11. Senga (possibility, but word is he has 5 & 6 year offers on the table)

13. Bassitt (not likely, especially with loss of comp pick)

15. Benintendi (I doubt it.)

17. Manaea (probably not)

21. Syndergaard (please no)

23. Eovaldi (after Bogey, maybe our second most likely, although giving up the comp pick we'll get of he signs elsewhere is like a ding against signing him.)

24. T Rogers (Could be our last gasp effort at a significant signing- along with Jansen)

25. JD Martinez (nope)

26. Vazquez (long shot)

27. Jansen (see #24)

30. Quintana (maybe a good choice due to short term)

33. Profar (nope)

37. Drury (nope)

38. Stripling

39. Chafin

40. Segura

41. Wacha (maybe?)

42. Robertson

43. Brantley

44. Conforto

47. J Turner

48. Kluber

50. Rucinski

Others: Andrus, Belt, Carpenter, Cueto, A Diaz, Fujinami, Fulmer (I'd sign him), Gallo, Greinke, Kiermaier, Kimbrel, Longoria, Lugo, Mancini, Moore, Peterson, G Sanchez, Smyly

 

Another from moon.

[Bellhorn04]

Will this be the 26 and 40 man roster on day two of the season?

 

26

5 SP: Nate, Sale/Paxton (one on 60 day IL), Whitlock, Bello, Pivetta

9 RP: Jansen, Houck, Martin, Schreiber, Joely R, Barnes, Crawford, Winckowski, Brasier(Taylor on 60 say IL)

2 C: Vazquez & McGuire

1 1B: Casas

1 1B/DH: Hosmer

1 2B: Story

1 SS: Bogey

1 3B: Devers

1 IF: Arroyo

1 LF: Verdugo

1 CF: Kike

2 RF: Conforto & Refsnyder

 

Rest of 40:

P: Kelly, Mata, Walter, Seabold, Murphy, German, Ort or DHern[DFA or trade the other]

C: Wong

2B/DH: E Valdez

IF: Park, Hamilton & Downs

OF: Rafaela & Duran

 

Another.

[Bellhorn04]

I'm thinking Andrus on a 2 year deal or maybe Segura for 1 year to play 2nd, and Story plays SS for one year before Mayer takes over.

 

That allows for more money for RF (Conforto or Gallo) and SP (Nate, Senga, Kluber, Wacha) and if we go light maybe bring Vaz back or trade for a RF/SP/SS/C.

 

moon again!

[Old Red]

moon again!

 

He’s like Bloom that he throws lots of things against the wall, and hopes something will stick.

[Bellhorn04]

1) Extend Devers

2) Sign Eovaldi or Kluber

3) Sign Andrus

 

At least it'll look like they're trying.

 

My first one. Yes I said Eovaldi or Kluber. But the point of this exercise is to disprove the idea that nobody wanted Eovaldi back.

[Bellhorn04]

Add both for #2 or one plus Wacha... and of course, half of Hill, who will be ready to step in when someone else inevitably crumbles and has to be shut down for the rest of the year.

 

This was in reply to my post.

[Bellhorn04]

When you look at the MLBTR feed it's like someone is having fun with the Sox. Yesterday we had

 

"Red Sox Interested in JD Martinez Reunion"

 

followed shortly by

 

"JD Martinez to Sign With Dodgers"

 

Maybe the Sox were interested in the reunion of JD with Betts...

 

Some snark from me about JD signing.

[Bellhorn04]

Exactly. At best all you're going to see is adding Kubler and Andrus or something similar

 

This was correct!

[Bellhorn04]

Again, this offseason is Bloom's legacy. He got a pass for Mookie leaving. If the Sox are not good this year, it's because of his roster construction over the past few years. His inaction and curious small-market moves have not put the Sox in the position to win for the most part. 2021 was a good season. 2020 and 2022 were not.

 

mvp telling it!

[Bellhorn04]

Do this and add Kluber or Nate, and I'd feel a lot better.

 

Of course, a Devers extension would put the cherry on top, and while I'm at it, sign Fulmer and DFA Brasier and maybe even Bell would think we should be better than 2022.

 

moon still wants Nate!

[Bellhorn04]

I don't think anyone's crying over Hill, but I think we do need another starting pitcher for 2023, regardless of whether they're part of the core group going forward.

 

I would say this is one of the rare occasions where at least 90% of us are in agreement. We need Kluber or Eovaldi or Greinke or a trade. Bloom basically promised a starting pitcher. He laid it on pretty thick, actually, with the "leadership, upside and innings" stuff.

 

Me again.

[Bellhorn04]

And reportedly, the Sox don't even have interest in Eovaldi...

 

No rumors on any of the other possibilities, either, for that matter.

 

I was sad.

[Bellhorn04]

Eovaldi to the Rangers. Down to Kluber and Greinke.

 

Nate just signed.

[Bellhorn04]

Why are we counting Greinke?

 

I'd rather have Wacha or just go with Mata.

 

moon putting in a good word for Wacha!

[Bellhorn04]

Houck is not a great rotation candidate. He’s got two wipeout pitches, but he gets abused second and third time through. He has not shown the capability or the arsenal to start

 

Jax, sadly for us, on the money.

[Bellhorn04]

Whitlock is a better rotation candidate, but needs to prove health

 

But I’m actually shocked on Eovaldi. With all the money flowing, he essentially signed a 2 yr extension, which nowadays doesn’t look that bad

 

Jax surprised that Eovaldi's deal was as low as it was.

[Bellhorn04]

Yep, just one more thing to piss me off.

 

Me replying to Jax's last post.

[Bellhorn04]

If there’s ever been a truer indication of a rebuild, this was it

 

And now, holy s***, Jax destroys us, saying that the inability to outbid Texas for Eovaldi shows we're punting.

[Bellhorn04]

Four? Two old guys and two recent surgically-procedured young guns.

 

Apparently, the Sox valued Eflin more than Eovaldi, offering the Rayward one the biggest reported pitching contract of the Bloom Era. I was in on Eflin early, but as a late-innings option, after seeing him in that role in the postseason.

 

The one word to describe Boston's offseason that I'm seeing more lately is confusing.

 

5Gloves on Eovaldi signing.

[Bellhorn04]

Jensen 35 yrs old

Turner 38 years old

Kluber 37 years old

 

Is this a plan for sustainable success?

 

700hitter was unimpressed with Bloom's offseason start to finish.

[Bellhorn04]

My choice for ss at this point would be Jose Iglesias. He would be my 'placeholder' for either Mayer or Rafaela. I get the sense that Rafaela is more ready now than Mayer. Sox is high on Rafaela at multiple positions. Eventually they will both be starters in my opinion.

 

As a side note, please do not get cute and move Story to shortstop. That's is all we need is for him to get hurt playing short. Keep him at second base, PERIOD. I will be PISSED at Bloom if a move is made.

 

Nick on shortstop and keeping Story at second.

[notin]

700hitter was unimpressed with Bloom's offseason start to finish.

 

700hitter has ripped every move Bloom has made. This is not news…

[notin]

moon putting in a good word for Wacha!

 

Technically it was a bad word for Greinke. Not sure how in on Greinke the Sox really were..

[notin]

Jax surprised that Eovaldi's deal was as low as it was.

 

There is something about this that should raise questions.

 

Why was Eovaldi’s deal so low? We focus on Boston not tipping it for obvious reasons. But there are 28 other teams that didn’t either. Heck his own hometown Astros, who were in on him in 2019 and had just lost a Cy Young winner, stepped aside at that money. Other consistently injured pitchers like Jameson Taillon and Taijuan Walker managed to land 4 year deals. But not one team would go that far for Eovaldi?

[Bellhorn04]

There is something about this that should raise questions.

 

Why was Eovaldi’s deal so low? We focus on Boston not tipping it for obvious reasons. But there are 28 other teams that didn’t either. Heck his own hometown Astros, who were in on him in 2019 and had just lost a Cy Young winner, stepped aside at that money. Other consistently injured pitchers like Jameson Taillon and Taijuan Walker managed to land 4 year deals. But not one team would go that far for Eovaldi?

 

And nobody topped the much lower deal that Kluber got from us. So that should have told us even more about how s***** Kluber was, right?

Edited June 5, 2023 by Bellhorn04

[moonslav59]

Technically it was a bad word for Greinke. Not sure how in on Greinke the Sox really were..

 

At one point, I suggested a QO for Wacha but then realised he could be gotten for less.

[notin]

And nobody topped the much lower deal that Kluber got from us. So that should have told us even more about how s***** Kluber was, right?

 

Right. Especially if we ignore the age gap. The one that puts Kluber in the “one year deals until they dry up” phase of his career while Eovaldi should still be attracting multiyear offers…

[Bellhorn04]

Right. Especially if we ignore the age gap. The one that puts Kluber in the “one year deals until they dry up” phase of his career while Eovaldi should still be attracting multiyear offers…

 

I don't think anyone is saying Eovaldi was a slam-dunk must-have. But he had a lot more upside than Kluber.

 

And Bloom said he would acquire a pitcher with upside. I guess that was just a whopper.