Red Sox: Off Season '23-'24

[sk7326]

Why do we think players will just improve on defense? If Breslow addressed the pitching staff by saying “Brandon Walter will just have to get better”, who would find that acceptable?

 

I think if you expected improvement on any area - hitting, pitching, fielding - fielding is the hardest one to just improve…

 

Well, if Story is just any sort of healthy that means one of the middle infield positions will be above average to plus. Casas will likely be better at 1B - if nothing else because he probably can't be worse. I could see a world where Rafaela is at 2B and Story at SS, and that would probably be solid, even if I think Rafaela is best optimized at CF.

[sk7326]

Looking at the Success Rate Added via Statcast Data

 

1B: Triston Casas, 33rd out of 37 qualified

2B: Christina Arroyo, 26th out of 40

SS: Nobody Qualified on roster ... Kike Hernandez, 35th out of 35

3B: Rafael Devers, 31st out of 36

LF: Masataka Yoshida, 33rd out of 35

CF: Jarren Duran, 34th out of 38 (Adam Duvall 38th out of 38)

RF: Alex Verdugo, 12th out of 36

 

So that is a grand total of 1 player who was above the median in Statcast metrics

The middle infield in particular - to give some perspective

 

2022 - Bogaerts was 14th at SS, Story was 2nd at 2B.

 

So the middle infield went from pretty good to pee-you.

[Hugh2]

Why do we think players will just improve on defense? If Breslow addressed the pitching staff by saying “Brandon Walter will just have to get better”, who would find that acceptable?

 

I think if you expected improvement on any area - hitting, pitching, fielding - fielding is the hardest one to just improve…

 

Hey man, everyone doubted me last year when I said Verdugo would have a bounce back year with the glove. I'm calling it again. Casas will be legit on D nextyear.

[Hugh2]

Looking at the Success Rate Added via Statcast Data

 

1B: Triston Casas, 33rd out of 37 qualified

2B: Christina Arroyo, 26th out of 40

SS: Nobody Qualified on roster ... Kike Hernandez, 35th out of 35

3B: Rafael Devers, 31st out of 36

LF: Masataka Yoshida, 33rd out of 35

CF: Jarren Duran, 34th out of 38 (Adam Duvall 38th out of 38)

RF: Alex Verdugo, 12th out of 36

 

So that is a grand total of 1 player who was above the median in Statcast metrics

The middle infield in particular - to give some perspective

 

2022 - Bogaerts was 14th at SS, Story was 2nd at 2B.

 

So the middle infield went from pretty good to pee-you.

 

This has me thinking the problem was at least partially due to bad coaching, but on the other hand you can only coach guys up so much.

[mvp 78]

This has me thinking the problem was at least partially due to bad coaching, but on the other hand you can only coach guys up so much.

 

They got rid of the IF defense coach.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

They got rid of the IF defense coach.

 

And they got rid of the CBO who assembled that jugular knot.

[sk7326]

This has me thinking the problem was at least partially due to bad coaching, but on the other hand you can only coach guys up so much.

 

There is a Jimmies and Joes thing. But I also wonder whether the shift rules impeded some of the ways the team could wallpaper over the issue. That said, Bogaerts this year was roughly the same as he was last year by Statcast data. Same with Dansby Swanson at the top of the list.

[moonslav59]

This has me thinking the problem was at least partially due to bad coaching, but on the other hand you can only coach guys up so much.

 

Players out of position did not help.

 

Duran in LF is fine.

Kike in CF was fine.

Duvall in LF or RF would have been better.

 

We need a healthy Story in '24.\

If Duran can play almost always in LF, that will help.

2B has upside with Urias and Reyes over Arroyo and Valdez.

Casas may or may not improve.

Devers is up and down and more down than up.

I'm hoping Wong improves.

If Rafaela's bat can carry him, we can see a big plus on CF D.

[mvp 78]

Players out of position did not help.

 

Thanks to Bloom we got to witness:

 

Arroyo in RF

Franchy at 1B

Dalbec at SS

Kiké as the fulltime SS disasterpiece

Duvall as the fulltime injury prone CF

Old Man Turner at 2B

Schwarber at 1B in the playoffs

Chavis in LF

[sk7326]

Players out of position did not help.

 

Duran in LF is fine.

Kike in CF was fine.

Duvall in LF or RF would have been better.

 

We need a healthy Story in '24.\

If Duran can play almost always in LF, that will help.

2B has upside with Urias and Reyes over Arroyo and Valdez.

Casas may or may not improve.

Devers is up and down and more down than up.

I'm hoping Wong improves.

If Rafaela's bat can carry him, we can see a big plus on CF D.

 

One of the useful things from the statcast data is also seeing exactly how many outs above average there are in general - the spread. We know these positions are not all equal.

 

Casas is bad at 1st - but the road to "good enough" is not all that diffcult.

 

Kike is an interesting case - went from one of the best CFs in the game in 2021 to middle of the pack in 2022.

[moonslav59]

Thanks to Bloom we got to witness:

 

Arroyo in RF

Franchy at 1B

Dalbec at SS

Kiké as the fulltime SS disasterpiece

Duvall as the fulltime injury prone CF

Old Man Turner at 2B

Schwarber at 1B in the playoffs

Chavis in LF

 

Also...

 

Wong, Vaz & Dalbec at 2B

Vaz at 3B

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

Thanks to Bloom we got to witness:

 

Arroyo in RF

Franchy at 1B

Dalbec at SS

Kiké as the fulltime SS disasterpiece

Duvall as the fulltime injury prone CF

Old Man Turner at 2B

Schwarber at 1B in the playoffs

Chavis in LF

 

Don't forget these Opening Day delights:

 

Marwin Gonzalez starting in leftfield in '21, and...

 

Kluber starting on the mound in '23 (threw out the first pitch; Rutschman hit out the 7th one).

[mvp 78]

Also...

 

Wong, Vaz & Dalbec at 2B

Vaz at 3B

 

They all only got a few innings here and there. I was trying to find guys that got starts out of position. Vaz had a GS at 2B under DD, but none under Bloom.

[mvp 78]

Don't forget these Opening Day delights:

 

Marwin Gonzalez starting in leftfield in '21, and...

 

Kluber starting on the mound in '23 (threw out the first pitch; Rutschman hit out the 7th one).

 

Those two were bad players, but not necessarily playing out of position. Marwin had almost 150 starts in LF prior to that game.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

Those two were bad players, but not necessarily playing out of position. Marwin had almost 150 starts in LF prior to that game.

 

Kluber looked out of position just wearing a Red Sox uni...

[mvp 78]

Kluber looked out of position just wearing a Red Sox uni...

 

Guys that looked weird as Red Sox:

 

Canseco

Bichette

Pierzynski

Colon

Cone

Ricky

Mitchell

Sizemore

[Old Red]

Guys that looked weird as Red Sox:

 

Canseco

Bichette

Pierzynski

Colon

Cone

Ricky

Mitchell

Sizemore

 

David wells.

[Bellhorn04]

Guys that looked weird as Red Sox:

 

Canseco

Bichette

Pierzynski

Colon

Cone

Ricky

Mitchell

Sizemore

 

Tony Perez.

[mvp 78]

David wells.

 

I had initially written Wells down, but deleted him because he fit better as a Red Sox than the others. Since Wells had already played for 2 AL East teams, it wasn't that surprising to see him elsewhere.

[mvp 78]

Tony Perez.

 

Before my time, but even as a kid it seemed like a weird fit when you'd find a card of his.

[cp176]

Never could get used to seeing a crippled Orlando Cepada in a Sox uni but for me seeing the great Elston Howard playing for us in '67 was unreal.

[vegasbob]

Thanks to Bloom we got to witness:

 

Arroyo in RF

Franchy at 1B

Dalbec at SS

Kiké as the fulltime SS disasterpiece

Duvall as the fulltime injury prone CF

Old Man Turner at 2B

Schwarber at 1B in the playoffs

Chavis in LF

 

And does anyone wonder if the full truth be known that Cora probably hated Bloom who may have rationalized all of the above mismatches by trying to gain flexibility in the roster. Generally not the way high level MLB gets played.

 

Oh, and the rest thing. Marcus Semien played in every one of the Rangers 172 games this year.

[Old Red]

I had initially written Wells down, but deleted him because he fit better as a Red Sox than the others. Since Wells had already played for 2 AL East teams, it wasn't that surprising to see him elsewhere.

 

He definitely filled out the uniform.

[Old Red]

Never could get used to seeing a crippled Orlando Cepada in a Sox uni but for me seeing the great Elston Howard playing for us in '67 was unreal.

 

Elston made a great block of the plate, and tag on a throw from Jose Tartabull against the White Sox.

[moonslav59]

Tony Perez.

 

Pitcher theme...

 

Tom Seaver

Fergie Jenkins

Brett Saberhagen

John Smoltz

[Bellhorn04]

Pitcher theme...

 

Tom Seaver

Fergie Jenkins

Brett Saberhagen

John Smoltz

 

Lee Smith

 

We're listing a lot of guys who were once great, at the end of their careers.

[cp176]

Elston made a great block of the plate, and tag on a throw from Jose Tartabull against the White Sox.

 

I can see that play like it happened yesterday. Tartabull of all people. Sox picked up a lot of guys at the ends of careers who actually helped them out. Remember Dick Groat?

[Bellhorn04]

Juan Marichal pitched for the Sox in 1974.

[Bellhorn04]

A good trivia question would be to name every Hall of Famer who played for the Red Sox at any time in their career.

[moonslav59]

Juan Marichal pitched for the Sox in 1974.

 

WOW!

 

Good one!

 

Loved that high leg kick.