Red Sox (May) vs Athletics (Springs): 9/9/25, 10:05pm

[FredLynn]

8 hours ago, SPLENDIDSPLINTER said:

Seattle's GM supposedly did his job and look where they are. You should add some tracks to your mind.

I don’t care about Seattle. I only care that the Red Sox GM failed at the deadline. He even admitted he was disappointed that he didn’t do more, reeling off a litany of excuses for his failure.

[Bellhorn04]

1 minute ago, FredLynn said:

I don’t care about Seattle. I only care that the Red Sox GM failed at the deadline. He even admitted he was disappointed that he didn’t do more, reeling off a litany of excuses for his failure.

No one can say you don't stay on message, Fred.

[drewski6]

4 minutes ago, Bellhorn04 said:

No one can say you don't stay on message, Fred.

Yeah, but hes right in this case.  Breslow offered up a bunch of nonsense regarding his second consecutive deadline failure.  He did not say that he thought he did well or accomplished his goals. He admitted failure, and then for reasons read off a laundry list of lies/nonsense.

But it may have been a blessing in disguise with all these young pitchers getting chances and adding intrigue.

[Bellhorn04]

1 minute ago, drewski6 said:

Yeah, but hes right in this case.  Breslow offered up a bunch of nonsense regarding his second consecutive deadline failure.  He did not say that he thought he did well or accomplished his goals. He admitted failure, and then for reasons read off a laundry list of lies/nonsense.

But it may have been a blessing in disguise with all these young pitchers getting chances and adding intrigue.

And if Breslow refused to trade Tolle or Early maybe he should get kudos instead of bricks. 

[drewski6]

23 minutes ago, Bellhorn04 said:

And if Breslow refused to trade Tolle or Early maybe he should get kudos instead of bricks. 

If it was a refusal sure, but the way he described it, he tried to move anyone and everyone even some names that would have us gasping (according to him, not me)....and he just couldnt get any traction.

He said that nobody wanted any of our players and he tried to move so many of them. Which doesnt make sense because there were teams that made so many moves so you would imagine that if other teams had the ammo to get deal #7 done, we really didnt have the ammo to do much at all?

But regardless, I am happy with the state we are in and that we still have Tolle and Early.  But it wasnt Breslow refusing to move certain dudes (again his words) he just said nobody wanted a thing we had....ANd I think its more so that nobody wants to be on the phone with him. I know I dont.

[Cameron Tran]

Romy all good?

[FredLynn]

1 hour ago, Bellhorn04 said:

No one can say you don't stay on message, Fred.

The BOTTOM LINE is that everyone knew the needs of the team. It was no secret. And Breslow failed to obtain a good #2 SP, an offensive weapon, preferably at 1B, a backup catcher, or any proven quality RPs. He gave us M&Ms instead. This did not help our chances for a deep run in Oct. at all.

And that is his job.

[Cameron Tran]

1 minute ago, FredLynn said:

The BOTTOM LINE is that everyone knew the needs of the team. It was no secret. And Breslow failed to obtain a good #2 SP, an offensive weapon, preferably at 1B, a backup catcher, or any proven quality RPs. He gave us M&Ms instead. This did not help our chances for a deep run in Oct. at all.

And that is his job.

Lowe was a really great pickup and Matz had a 3.44 in 55 innings with a 2.93 FIP with STL. He also knows how important Connor Wong is to the pitching staff. Not a horrible deadline the problem is he ran his mouth about how "big" he is going this deadline after trading devers but didn't come through. 

[FredLynn]

4 minutes ago, Cameron Tran said:

Lowe was a really great pickup and Matz had a 3.44 in 55 innings with a 2.93 FIP with STL. He also knows how important Connor Wong is to the pitching staff. Not a horrible deadline the problem is he ran his mouth about how "big" he is going this deadline after trading devers but didn't come through. 

The Red Sox as of today are 3rd in ERA in the AL, 2nd in BA, 4th in OPS, and 2nd in runs scored. They are well positioned to make a run of it despite all the injuries. Had Breslow done his job we might even be the favorites to make it to the WS. As of now there is no clear AL favorite.

[Cameron Tran]

1 minute ago, FredLynn said:

The Red Sox as of today are 3rd in ERA in the AL, 2nd in BA, 4th in OPS, and 2nd in runs scored. They are well positioned to make a run of it despite all the injuries. Had Breslow done his job we might even be the favorites to make it to the WS. As of now there is no clear AL favorite.

Agreed, but the only thing we can hold against Breslow is not adding a reliable arm. If May had performed (like the flashes we saw in his start against Houston) we'd be praising him for not overpaying for a Zac Gallen or a Sandy Alcantara. Breslow went high risk high reward with May (good stuff on paper, poor performance and injury history) but that's a risk we really haven't seen the Sox take at the deadline in a long time. If he hadn't hyped up this deadline so much, or honestly if he had figured things out with Devers and hadn't put so much pressure on Devers, this deadline would be much less of a talking point. 

[Maxbialystock]

1 hour ago, drewski6 said:

Yeah, but hes right in this case.  Breslow offered up a bunch of nonsense regarding his second consecutive deadline failure.  He did not say that he thought he did well or accomplished his goals. He admitted failure, and then for reasons read off a laundry list of lies/nonsense.

But it may have been a blessing in disguise with all these young pitchers getting chances and adding intrigue.

"Blessing in disguise"  !!!!????  Surprise to you and me maybe, but not to Breslow or Cora.  

Since the July 30 disastrous deadline failure, the Sox are 22-14 despite Bregman's slump, Mayer and Anthony going on the IL, Abreu still on the IL, Rafaela's slump, Ref on and off the IL, Yoshida's struggles at the plate, etc.  

What has kept the Sox going has been the pitching, the very thing you and FredLynn want us to believe has failed because Breslow refused to make a disadvantageous deal for a starter.  

 

[FredLynn]

Just now, Maxbialystock said:

"Blessing in disguise"  !!!!????  Surprise to you and me maybe, but not to Breslow or Cora.  

Since the July 30 disastrous deadline failure, the Sox are 22-14 despite Bregman's slump, Mayer and Anthony going on the IL, Abreu still on the IL, Rafaela's slump, Ref on and off the IL, Yoshida's struggles at the plate, etc.  

What has kept the Sox going has been the pitching, the very thing you and FredLynn want us to believe has failed because Breslow refused to make a disadvantageous deal for a starter.  

 

I didn't say the pitching has failed. I said it could have been better. May has an ERA of over 5 and has been put on the IL because he stinks. Our pitching could have been dominant if Breslow did his job.

[mvp 78]

2 hours ago, drewski6 said:

The red sox starting pitching is quickly becoming like the hitters, all lefties

Perales, Sandlin, Witherspoon, Phillips, Eyanson, Paez, Fajardo, Uberstine: RHP

The pitching will get righted soon enough. 

[Cameron Tran]

Just now, mvp 78 said:

Perales, Sandlin, Witherspoon, Phillips, Eyanson, Paez, Fajardo, Uberstine: RHP

The pitching will get righted soon enough. 

Crochet is also pretty split proof with the cutter and Early's changeup should be a plus pitch against both LHH and RHH. Hopefully we'll target a RHP this offseason (i'm looking at you dylan cease)

 

[Cameron Tran]

7 minutes ago, Maxbialystock said:

"Blessing in disguise"  !!!!????  Surprise to you and me maybe, but not to Breslow or Cora.  

Since the July 30 disastrous deadline failure, the Sox are 22-14 despite Bregman's slump, Mayer and Anthony going on the IL, Abreu still on the IL, Rafaela's slump, Ref on and off the IL, Yoshida's struggles at the plate, etc.  

What has kept the Sox going has been the pitching, the very thing you and FredLynn want us to believe has failed because Breslow refused to make a disadvantageous deal for a starter.  

 

problem is the lack of depth. Crochet and Bello are both going on career high in innings. Gio is in his first full season since 2023. Alot of the bullpen has surpassed or is approaching career highs. 

[mvp 78]

4 minutes ago, Maxbialystock said:

"Blessing in disguise"  !!!!????  Surprise to you and me maybe, but not to Breslow or Cora.  

Since the July 30 disastrous deadline failure, the Sox are 22-14 despite Bregman's slump, Mayer and Anthony going on the IL, Abreu still on the IL, Rafaela's slump, Ref on and off the IL, Yoshida's struggles at the plate, etc.  

What has kept the Sox going has been the pitching, the very thing you and FredLynn want us to believe has failed because Breslow refused to make a disadvantageous deal for a starter.  

The problem is that the Sox can't go with a 3 man rotation. Post-ASB, it was May and Buehler at the 4/5 and neither will be pitching down the stretch. Both had negative fWAR (combined 2-5 record) in that time period and weren't holding up their end of the bargain. If the Sox had better 4/5 options, there'd either be a bigger WC cushion or would be leading the division.

May was a failure. Not replacing Buehler was a failure. 

[mvp 78]

4 minutes ago, Cameron Tran said:

Crochet is also pretty split proof with the cutter and Early's changeup should be a plus pitch against both LHH and RHH. Hopefully we'll target a RHP this offseason (i'm looking at you dylan cease)

 

I'm not a Cease fan due to the high bb rate. Not sure what Bres thinks about him. 

[Bellhorn04]

Well, the Trade Deadline post mortems are much less painful when you're winning games.

 

[mvp 78]

2 minutes ago, Bellhorn04 said:

Well, the Trade Deadline post mortems are much less painful when you're winning games.

 

Trade Deadline didn't work out, but Sox are still winning for once. Ultimately, we may change our tune depending on how the playoffs end up. 

[Maxbialystock]

33 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

I didn't say the pitching has failed. I said it could have been better. May has an ERA of over 5 and has been put on the IL because he stinks. Our pitching could have been dominant if Breslow did his job.

Ahem.  Please tell us, one and all, the last time Sox pitching was dominant.  Do I need to remind you, yet again, that the Sox have gone through 13 starters this season (including Crawford, who hasn't pitched but who started 33 games last year) to get where we are now?  

Or that July is the worst month to go after a really good starter and December is the best month?  

[Maxbialystock]

21 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

Trade Deadline didn't work out, but Sox are still winning for once. Ultimately, we may change our tune depending on how the playoffs end up. 

My tune hasn't changed.  I was not upset when Breslow didn't make a big deal for a #2 starter in July.  Far from it.  

[Maxbialystock]

32 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

The problem is that the Sox can't go with a 3 man rotation. Post-ASB, it was May and Buehler at the 4/5 and neither will be pitching down the stretch. Both had negative fWAR (combined 2-5 record) in that time period and weren't holding up their end of the bargain. If the Sox had better 4/5 options, there'd either be a bigger WC cushion or would be leading the division.

May was a failure. Not replacing Buehler was a failure. 

Buehler had 7 quality starts and May 2--and the Sox have the 2d most quality starts in MLB (and the most in the AL).  Crochet, Bello, and Giolito--2 of whom Breslow brought in--are the best top 3 starters for the Sox in a long time.

And please don't give me that "failure" to get a good 4 and a good 5 starter stuff when we both know that in years past the Sox routinely had to use a reliever to start.  Plus right now I kind of like Tolle and Early.  The Sox have now gone through 13 starters this season.  

[FredLynn]

18 minutes ago, Maxbialystock said:

Ahem.  Please tell us, one and all, the last time Sox pitching was dominant.  Do I need to remind you, yet again, that the Sox have gone through 13 starters this season (including Crawford, who hasn't pitched but who started 33 games last year) to get where we are now?  

Or that July is the worst month to go after a really good starter and December is the best month?  

Ahem. I didn't say the pitching WAS dominant. I said it COULD HAVE BEEN dominant had Breslow done his job.

[mvp 78]

1 minute ago, Maxbialystock said:

Buehler had 7 quality starts and May 2--and the Sox have the 2d most quality starts in MLB (and the most in the AL).  Crochet, Bello, and Giolito--2 of whom Breslow brought in--are the best top 3 starters for the Sox in a long time.

And please don't give me that "failure" to get a good 4 and a good 5 starter stuff when we both know that in years past the Sox routinely had to use a reliever to start.  Plus right now I kind of like Tolle and Early.  The Sox have now gone through 13 starters this season.  

In years past, the Sox swooned and missed the playoffs. Not sure starting relievers (which they HAVE done) is a good comparison. 

Feel free to defend the DFA'd Buehler. I won't, but you can. 

Buehler's rank among starters with 100+ IP

2nd worst FIP

10th worst ERA

3rd worst HR/FB%

3rd worst BB/9

4th worst K/BB

5th worst WHIP

WORST fWAR

7 QS ties Andrew Heaney who was also DFA'd

[Cameron Tran]

23 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

In years past, the Sox swooned and missed the playoffs. Not sure starting relievers (which they HAVE done) is a good comparison. 

Feel free to defend the DFA'd Buehler. I won't, but you can. 

Buehler's rank among starters with 100+ IP

2nd worst FIP

10th worst ERA

3rd worst HR/FB%

3rd worst BB/9

4th worst K/BB

5th worst WHIP

WORST fWAR

7 QS ties Andrew Heaney who was also DFA'd

Buehler was undeniably a bad deal but don't forget at the time people really loved this move from Breslow. One year deal for a guy with postseason experience who had shown flashes at time. Really sucked it didn't work out but don't forget some people had him penciled in as our #2 behind crochet. 

[mvp 78]

16 minutes ago, Cameron Tran said:

Buehler was undeniably a bad deal but don't forget at the time people really loved this move from Breslow. One year deal for a guy with postseason experience who had shown flashes at time. Really sucked it didn't work out but don't forget some people had him penciled in as our #2 behind crochet. 

He was really bad last season until the final 10 IP. I don't think everyone was sold on him. 

[SPLENDIDSPLINTER]

Breslow failed because he couldn't obtain a #2 starter? If that's the case so did every other GM of a contending team.

[drewski6]

1 hour ago, Maxbialystock said:

"Blessing in disguise"  !!!!????  Surprise to you and me maybe, but not to Breslow or Cora.  

Since the July 30 disastrous deadline failure, the Sox are 22-14 despite Bregman's slump, Mayer and Anthony going on the IL, Abreu still on the IL, Rafaela's slump, Ref on and off the IL, Yoshida's struggles at the plate, etc.  

What has kept the Sox going has been the pitching, the very thing you and FredLynn want us to believe has failed because Breslow refused to make a disadvantageous deal for a starter.  

 

Not at all what I said

[Maxbialystock]

59 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

Ahem. I didn't say the pitching WAS dominant. I said it COULD HAVE BEEN dominant had Breslow done his job.

COULDA, WOULDA, SHOULDA.  You have just said Breslow is a failure for not producing the only dominant Sox pitching staff ever in his 2d year as CBO.  

[drewski6]

Guys, its Breslow who said he didnt get enough at the deadline.  He then crossed his arms and pouted that nobody was going to give him credit for trying.

He then said that he tried to trade a long list of people, a list that included names that would make fans uncomfortable.  He said he was willing to part with anybody and offered sooo many names, but no other GMs had any interest in any of our players/prospects

Breslows words.  

People are jumping for joy about the young pitching kicking butt, and I am too.  But Breslow tried to do more, and offered at least some of the names that are now kicking butt.  So it may have worked out for the long term, even though , I think its a short term failure (more so lack of bats than arms, I think our pitching exceeds our hitting) because I think we are really good but are 2 solid bats short of being a contender.

But its not the end of the world because we are most likely going to get in, and a few bats can carry you once you are in, and even if we dont make a deep run, we are set up very well for next year

But some of you are giving Breslow wayyyy too much credit.  Hes a pouty panda who needs his dipey changed