4/8 @ Tigers

[Larry Cook]

I doubt any major moves will be made over an 8 game sample size.

 

While Kike is not doing well, at all, he has company:

 

16+ ABs

.364 Wong (more ABs than McGuire)

.496 Casas

.519 Arroyo

.579 Kike

.586 Refsnyder

.645 Turner (despite the .378 OBP)

 

I will say, I did expect better D from Kike, too.

 

 

 

Hernandez also has something like 5 errors on the season! He needs to be in the outfield.

[Old Red]

Everyone knew before the season even started that Kike had never been anything close to be a FT SS before with I believe 24 games is the most Kike had ever played there, and some just took it for granted that he would be good there. Duvall has never been a FT CF, but he’s pounding the ball, and hasn’t had many rough chances out in CF there so far. That’s the kind of things that Bloom does when putting together a team just like last year when the Red Sox needed a CF he went out, and got Pham a LF. Kike is not hitting once again, which is a big problem too along with Casas, and Arroyo. Yoshida hasn’t exactly been knocking the cover off the ball either, and has hit more ping pong balls to the IF then anything else.

[moonslav59]

Hernandez also has something like 5 errors on the season! He needs to be in the outfield.

 

Singing to the choir.

 

I mentioned a way we can improve the D by shifting a few guys around, but I don't think Casas should be benched indefinitely to make it happen.

 

I'm also not sure Change hits any better, and he's not great on D, either.

 

I'm not sure we can say Chang is better on D based on 4 errors by Kike out of the gate, but if he is, certainly that is an option, too.

[jad]

Everyone knew before the season even started that Kike had never been anything close to be a FT SS before with I believe 24 games is the most Kike had ever played there, and some just took it for granted that he would be good there. Duvall has never been a FT CF, but he’s pounding the ball, and hasn’t had many rough chances out in CF there so far. That’s the kind of things that Bloom does when putting together a team just like last year when the Red Sox needed a CF he went out, and got Pham a LF. Kike is not hitting once again, which is a big problem too along with Casas, and Arroyo. Yoshida hasn’t exactly been knocking the cover off the ball either, and has hit more ping pong balls to the IF then anything else.

 

Come on, now. It's not Bloom's fault there were no free-agent Shortstops available this winter.

[Bellhorn04]

As I said before, Bloom tends to have a bit too much of a "try anything" attitude. And now we have a SS who's on pace for 100 errors.

[Old Red]

As I said before, Bloom tends to have a bit too much of a "try anything" attitude. And now we have a SS who's on pace for 100 errors.

 

Bobby D played SS yesterday, and is waiting in the wings in Worcester.

[notin]

As I said before, Bloom tends to have a bit too much of a "try anything" attitude. And now we have a SS who's on pace for 100 errors.

 

Kike only had about 1,000 career innings in CF before signing with Boston. That worked out.

 

It might be a bit early to panic on Kike at SS. Some (all?) of his errors are likely due a lack of experience at the position. Experienced shortstops Bo Bichette and CJ Abrams have 3 errors each, and neither has the “but I’ve been playing elsewhere” excuse.

 

The Sox are very likely going to stick with Hernandez for a while, and there’s a good chance he improves…

[notin]

As I said before, Bloom tends to have a bit too much of a "try anything" attitude. And now we have a SS who's on pace for 100 errors.

 

Why do we like to pretend that’s all Bloom and none of it is Cora? You know, the manager who started Christian Vazquez at 1b, 2b and 3b in various games before Bloom was even hired?

[notin]

As I said before, Bloom tends to have a bit too much of a "try anything" attitude. And now we have a SS who's on pace for 100 errors.

 

Also, if the Sox did sign a SS, they very likely wouldn’t have signed a CF who’s on pace for 81 HRs and a 338 OPS+…

[Bellhorn04]

Why do we like to pretend that’s all Bloom and none of it is Cora? You know, the manager who started Christian Vazquez at 1b, 2b and 3b in various games before Bloom was even hired?

 

I don't think it's pretending that Bloom didn't sign a SS.

[notin]

I don't think it's pretending that Bloom didn't sign a SS.

 

It wasn’t even a need until mid-January. At that point, there were certainly good players left (Correa hadn’t even signed the first of his 3 deals yet), but were there any stopgap options definitively better than Hernandez? (I liked Andrus, but as he is not at SS, comparisons are tough.)

 

Also Adalberto Mondesi isn’t dead yet. I get how his consistent IL trips can create that impression. But he isn’t…

[Old Red]

I don't think it's pretending that Bloom didn't sign a SS.

 

Very true, and Kike is nothing more that a stopgap himself no matter where he plays.

[notin]

I don't think it's pretending that Bloom didn't sign a SS.

 

Not to mention, signing a SS very likely means Kike is in CF. Which also very likely means Adam Duvall isn’t on the radar.

 

And as bad as the early Kike play has been at SS, the early hitting of Duvall has been better.

 

Of course both are likely to level off. I doubt anyone believes Duvall will maintain a 338 OPS+ all year. So why do you think Kike will get over 100 errors? (Bear in mind no player has made 100 errors in a season since the addition of webbing to the gloves. Do you really think Kike will be the first?)

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

Kike only had about 1,000 career innings in CF before signing with Boston. That worked out.

 

It might be a bit early to panic on Kike at SS. Some (all?) of his errors are likely due a lack of experience at the position. Experienced shortstops Bo Bichette and CJ Abrams have 3 errors each, and neither has the “but I’ve been playing elsewhere” excuse.

 

The Sox are very likely going to stick with Hernandez for a while, and there’s a good chance he improves…

 

Have to chaim in here, since I was just having a discussion about why a favorite like Toronto isn't the world-beater many expected... so far.

 

To be a champion, the shortstop position just can't be erratic. A good shortstop doesn't always have to hit, but he needs to be consistent on D.

[notin]

Have to chaim in here, since I was just having a discussion about why a favorite like Toronto isn't the world-beater many expected... so far.

 

To be a champion, the shortstop position just can't be erratic. A good shortstop doesn't always have to hit, but he needs to be consistent on D.

 

1. “Consistently bad” is still consistent.

 

2. If you meant “consistently good”, why does Derek Jeter have all those rings?

[moonslav59]

Not to mention, signing a SS very likely means Kike is in CF. Which also very likely means Adam Duvall isn’t on the radar.

 

And as bad as the early Kike play has been at SS, the early hitting of Duvall has been better.

 

Of course both are likely to level off. I doubt anyone believes Duvall will maintain a 338 OPS+ all year. So why do you think Kike will get over 100 errors? (Bear in mind no player has made 100 errors in a season since the addition of webbing to the gloves. Do you really think Kike will be the first?)

 

They could have signed a SS and not signed Turner. It did not have to be Duvall vs a SS. (Yoshida plays DH and Duvall LF.)

 

At the risk of sounding blasphemous to some, we could also have traded Casas for a pitcher, or maybe even a pitcher and SS, and played Turner at 1B, Yoshida at DH and Duvall in LF.

[moonslav59]

1. “Consistently bad” is still consistent.

 

2. If you meant “consistently good”, why does Derek Jeter have all those rings?

 

How about consistently average or below average on D, like the Padres' SS?

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

1. “Consistently bad” is still consistent.

 

2. If you meant “consistently good”, why does Derek Jeter have all those rings?

 

Didn't you pay attention? Calm eyes and intangibles mean everything.

 

FOX even tried to assign the Jeter Cam to his house after he retired, but he got a retraining order (they trained it, instead, on Judge).

[Bellhorn04]

Also Adalberto Mondesi isn’t dead yet. I get how his consistent IL trips can create that impression. But he isn’t…

 

He's not dead, but he's starting the season on the 60 day IL, so that's a bit of an issue.

[notin]

They could have signed a SS and not signed Turner. It did not have to be Duvall vs a SS. (Yoshida plays DH and Duvall LF.)

 

At the risk of sounding blasphemous to some, we could also have traded Casas for a pitcher, or maybe even a pitcher and SS, and played Turner at 1B, Yoshida at DH and Duvall in LF.

 

They could have, but that they signed Turner ahead of Duvall probably means they liked him more for the DH role than they liked re-arranging the OF for Duvall.

 

They brought in Duvall to play CF. As much as I questioned (and still question) that call, it’s pretty likely he would be the one not here….

[notin]

He's not dead, but he's starting the season on the 60 day IL, so that's a bit of an issue.

 

Yeah he’s one of those guys who the only ability he lacks is availability. If they knew he’d be out for two months, I do question that move, too.

 

Andrus was the obvious miss. But right now, would you prefer Andrus or Duvall? That does appear to be the choice…

[notin]

How about consistently average or below average on D, like the Padres' SS?

 

Which Padre SS? They have like 7 of them…

[moonslav59]

They could have, but that they signed Turner ahead of Duvall probably means they liked him more for the DH role than they liked re-arranging the OF for Duvall.

 

They brought in Duvall to play CF. As much as I questioned (and still question) that call, it’s pretty likely he would be the one not here….

 

I get the timeline argument, but one has to think some plans were already in place when they signed Turner.

 

I also think Turner was added as insurance for the uncertainty of Casas at 1B and as a backup to Devers at 3B. We are just talking conjecture and what ifs.

 

As it turned out, Andrus was signed to play 2B- not that we couldn't have played him at SS. I was all on board with signing Andrus, and when we see what he signed for, we could have had Yoshida, Turner, Mondesi and Andrus and not Chang.

 

[moonslav59]

Which Padre SS? They have like 7 of them…

 

The one known as "the one that got away."

[notin]

The one known as "the one that got away."

 

I live in Chicago. That’s literally what they call Fernando Tatis Jr…