6/22 @ Minosootuh

[SPLENDIDSPLINTER]

Cora should position the OF's on the other side of the fence.

[illinoisredsox]

Buxton is definitely out of his slump. 932 feet of homers today.

[illinoisredsox]

Unfortunately, Walter’s going to have to eat some innings today.

[vegasbob]

This would be a good day for the Sox to give Joe Ryan the distinction of a perfect game . Already 1/3rd of the way there. Sox batters/fielders are lifeless and Walter is checking his cap to see if his return ticket to Worcester is still valid

[mvp 78]

Twins' announcers are chirping about it's long overdue for expansion in MLB. i almost choked on my coffee.

 

It was just a few years ago that MLB and Selig was talking about CONTRACTION!

[vegasbob]

This is not kind, but after several shots of the Walter family in the stands, I'm guessing Brandon was adopted . That's how bad this game is so far.

[vegasbob]

This would be a good day for the Sox to give Joe Ryan the distinction of a perfect game . Already 1/3rd of the way there. Sox batters/fielders are lifeless and Walter is checking his cap to see if his return ticket to Worcester is still valid

 

Turner messes up the only reason to watch this game

[Bellhorn04]

Wil Flemming was just asked the question on the radio:

 

When do the Sox win? Is it when they hit? Pitch? Play defense? His opinion was door #3, defense.

 

Quite the reductive question. My money would actually be on #1 based on the season so far. When we score 6 runs we usually win. But all 3 answers are in play for sure.

[mvp 78]

Sort of fun to watch the Sox on organizational tryout day. Ship them up from Woo, play new positions, act sound asleep . Just move on to Chicago. Giving back to sub .500 teams .

 

Twins are a first place team. Sox are a last place team! Sox are doing a great job keeping up with them this series!!!!

[Maxbialystock]

Quite the reductive question. My money would actually be on #1 based on the season so far. When we score 6 runs we usually win. But all 3 answers are in play for sure.

 

Mostly hitting, but the rotation improved and pitching made a difference. It still can, but Sale and Houck are out.

 

Claiming that defense is the key to winning is just stupid. MLB is all about hitting and pitching. That's what teams pay the big bucks for. It's what a player must do reasonably well to get to MLB.

 

I'm not saying defense can't make a difference, just that it's nowhere near as important as the other two.

[vegasbob]

Twins are a first place team. Sox are a last place team! Sox are doing a great job keeping up with them this series!!!!

 

I like your take on this situation. The Red Sox are unpredictable if anything. The current roster instability due to injuries is problematic. Devers ongoing slump is problematic. Sale is problematic . Meanwhile, Cora works with what Bloom gives him.

 

What is ironic is that this particular game is still winnable based on the Sox tendency to come alive in late innings after showing nothing earlier.

[redsoxrules]

Mostly hitting, but the rotation improved and pitching made a difference. It still can, but Sale and Houck are out.

 

Claiming that defense is the key to winning is just stupid. MLB is all about hitting and pitching. That's what teams pay the big bucks for. It's what a player must do reasonably well to get to MLB.

 

I'm not saying defense can't make a difference, just that it's nowhere near as important as the other two.

 

Pitching involves defense. If your fielders are s*** then your pitching will suffer.

[illinoisredsox]

Mostly hitting, but the rotation improved and pitching made a difference. It still can, but Sale and Houck are out.

 

Claiming that defense is the key to winning is just stupid. MLB is all about hitting and pitching. That's what teams pay the big bucks for. It's what a player must do reasonably well to get to MLB.

 

I'm not saying defense can't make a difference, just that it's nowhere near as important as the other two.

 

Defense helps pitching. They go hand in hand. A guy like Bello is going to give up a lot of ground balls. He needs guys to make plays behind him. Also, the more plays that aren’t made, the more pitches have to be thrown, which means less innings get thrown. The more pitchers you have to use on a given day, the more likely it is one of them won’t have it.

 

You can’t count on 6 runs a game. You should be able to count on good defense. You may not win a game on defense, but you can lose one.

 

Flemming wasn’t saying defense was the key to winning, he’s saying the Sox win when they play good defense. Correlation is not causation.

Edited June 22, 2023 by illinoisredsox

[moonslav59]

Twins are a first place team. Sox are a last place team! Sox are doing a great job keeping up with them this series!!!!

 

We do have a better record than them, so there is that.

 

It looks like the Twins are keeping up with us.

[vegasbob]

Nothing happening yet for the Sox but just wait until next inning when Joe Ryan has to go through our lineup the 3rd time. Fireworks !!!

[redsoxrules]

Let Devers carry the team on his wallet, er broad back, with 4 for 5, 7 rbi's and 2 HR's. A slump for many is maybe a week or 10 days . Devers last 30 games shows a slash line of .205/.293/.410 (.703 OPS thanks to 6 HR's in his last 117 AB's) .

 

The reality is that the rest of the team has been carrying him for the 6 game win streak. At least he has started walking a bit , helping his OBP.

 

Devers hasn't been slumping just for 30 games. Dating back to since August of last year (span of 124 games) his WRC+ is 97 good for 92nd place amongst qualified batters and a 1.5 WAR.

[mvp 78]

Devers hasn't been slumping just for 30 games. Dating back to since August of last year (span of 124 games) his WRC+ is 97 good for 92nd place amongst qualified batters and a 1.5 WAR.

 

Damn, they should DFA him. Without his binky he's horrible.

[mvp 78]

Game is over. Hamilton should try to steal 2b, 3b and home.

[Maxbialystock]

Damn, they should DFA him. Without his binky he's horrible.

 

At $30M/year for 10 years (or whatever) he is non-DFAable.

[vegasbob]

Game is over. Hamilton should try to steal 2b, 3b and home.

 

He may have to figure out how to steal first.

[illinoisredsox]

A bit shaky, but Walters did a nice job today and let the bullpen reset. 6 2/3 relief innings.

[vegasbob]

He may have to figure out how to steal first.

 

He gets his hit !! Congrats. Now steal it around and mess up the shutout

[mvp 78]

A bit shaky, but Walters did a nice job today and let the bullpen reset. 6 2/3 relief innings.

 

He ate innings and saved the pen a little. Can't complain.

[moonslav59]

That was painful.

 

You don't see many complete game shutouts, anymore.

[Maxbialystock]

Defense helps pitching. They go hand in hand. A guy like Bello is going to give up a lot of ground balls. He needs guys to make plays behind him. Also, the more plays that aren’t made, the more pitches have to be thrown, which means less innings get thrown. The more pitchers you have to use on a given day, the more likely it is one of them won’t have it.

 

You can’t count on 6 runs a game. You should be able to count on good defense. You may not win a game on defense, but you can lose one.

 

Flemming wasn’t saying defense was the key to winning, he’s saying the Sox win when they play good defense. Correlation is not causation.

 

moonslav has said the same things repeatedly. But the simple fact is that the Sox have won 4 WS titles (and ended the 86 year curse) in the John Henry era primarily with terrific hitting and now and then pretty good pitching. Defense was always secondary.

 

And I'll tell you why, so pay attention. Hitting a round ball with a round bat squarely is extremely difficult to do--according to Ted Williams--and even harder when the ball is coming in hard with all manner of spins on it. And pitching, if anything, is even harder to do well because you are stuck with that miniscule rectangle, plus the tremendous effort it takes to throw that ball hard with the right spins, etc. Thus the advent of Tommy John surgery.

 

As for the defense, most of those plays are just routine grounders, popups, lazy fly balls, liners hit right to someone, etc. There are tons of good defensive players in the minors today who are just as good defensively as their MLB counterparts. They can't get to MLB because they can't hit, which is much harder to do.

 

Also, until this season, MLB teams were making defense even easier by using computers to predict where hitters normally hit grounders/liners/fly ball.

[moonslav59]

I don't think we have many choices for our 5th starter.

 

Pivetta

 

Walter

 

Murphy

[illinoisredsox]

That was painful.

 

You don't see many complete game shutouts, anymore.

 

Ryan was utterly dominant. Just have to tip you cap to him and move on.

 

Today wasn’t that painful; Twins had the advantage. Yesterday was the disappointment.

[illinoisredsox]

moonslav has said the same things repeatedly. But the simple fact is that the Sox have won 4 WS titles (and ended the 86 year curse) in the John Henry era primarily with terrific hitting and now and then pretty good pitching. Defense was always secondary.

 

And I'll tell you why, so pay attention. Hitting a round ball with a round bat squarely is extremely difficult to do--according to Ted Williams--and even harder when the ball is coming in hard with all manner of spins on it. And pitching, if anything, is even harder to do well because you are stuck with that miniscule rectangle, plus the tremendous effort it takes to throw that ball hard with the right spins, etc. Thus the advent of Tommy John surgery.

 

As for the defense, most of those plays are just routine grounders, popups, lazy fly balls, liners hit right to someone, etc. There are tons of good defensive players in the minors today who are just as good defensively as their MLB counterparts. They can't get to MLB because they can't hit, which is much harder to do.

 

Also, until this season, MLB teams were making defense even easier by using computers to predict where hitters normally hit grounders/liners/fly ball.

 

The Sox aren’t a bad defensive team because they don’t make great plays. They are a bad defensive team because they don’t make enough routine plays. They don’t turn a DP for some reason. Throw to the wrong base and give up an extra base. Stuff like that. Stuff that doesn’t even show up in the box score as an error

 

Those championship teams didn’t make those mistakes. They made the routine plays.

[notin]

Per the radio crew, the Sox have obtained Tayler Scott from the Dodgers for cash (Scott was recently DFA’d).

 

This is a real dumpster dive. Scott’s season and career numbers make Ort look like a Cy Young candidate.

 

We’re still in the time of year when all that’s available are DFAs. Bear in mind the Dodgers thought enough of Scott to add him to their 40 man roster at one point.

 

Scott, like Garza, is unlikely to finish the season with Boston…

[moonslav59]

moonslav has said the same things repeatedly. But the simple fact is that the Sox have won 4 WS titles (and ended the 86 year curse) in the John Henry era primarily with terrific hitting and now and then pretty good pitching. Defense was always secondary.

 

And I'll tell you why, so pay attention. Hitting a round ball with a round bat squarely is extremely difficult to do--according to Ted Williams--and even harder when the ball is coming in hard with all manner of spins on it. And pitching, if anything, is even harder to do well because you are stuck with that miniscule rectangle, plus the tremendous effort it takes to throw that ball hard with the right spins, etc. Thus the advent of Tommy John surgery.

 

As for the defense, most of those plays are just routine grounders, popups, lazy fly balls, liners hit right to someone, etc. There are tons of good defensive players in the minors today who are just as good defensively as their MLB counterparts. They can't get to MLB because they can't hit, which is much harder to do.

 

Also, until this season, MLB teams were making defense even easier by using computers to predict where hitters normally hit grounders/liners/fly ball.

 

Actually, my theory is that the Sox have almost always had plus hitting, but the rings came only after we acquired a second solid SP.

 

2004: Had Pedro- traded for Schilling

 

2007: Had Schilling- traded for Beckett

 

2013: Had Lester- signed Lackey

 

2018: Had Price- traded for Sale

 

Right now, maybe Bello can be an ace- maybe, but we are far from a #2, unless we think Paxton can keep going like this.

 

Also, most of those 4 ring years had more than just 2 solid starting pitchers.