A Realistic Look at the 2026 Red Sox: Part I

[mvp 78]

22 minutes ago, drewski6 said:

As the main piece in getting Pena, a 5 WAR SS, with 1.5 yrs left modest AAV on his deal.  

Thats pretty good value for Mayer.  I just dont want to trade him to trade him.  There is a decent chance he is a good MLB player at some point, if maybe, not as good as we once thought.  Theres also a chance he turns into a core player for whatever team he happens to be on.  Hes lost some shine, and Im not trading him for very little. BUt Id trade him for significant value.

I like Pena, but wouldn't expect 5 WAR out of him in a single season again. 

[Nick]

Moon, isn't it time for Part II?

[notin]

2 hours ago, mvp 78 said:

Adames isn't "bad" now, but like you said there's a lot more time left on that contract. Maybe he plays better in Fenway? His defense slipping is not ideal though. You'd need him to still be strong in the field for most of the contract for it to be worth it. 

Per StatCast, his arm is strong but he has about as much range as Will Ferrell…

[mvp 78]

5 minutes ago, Nick said:

Moon, isn't it time for Part II?

A brief history of Realistic Look Threads.

2026: Part I 10/3/25

2025: Part I 9/20/24, Part II 3/23/25

2024: Part I 10/1/23, Part II 3/29/24, Part III 7/30/24

2023: Part I 7/22/22, Part II 2/10/23, Part III 8/26/23

2022: Part I 8/12/21, Part II ???, Part III 5/10/22 (posted by me)

2021: Part I 8/17/20, Part II 3/22/21, Part III 7/30/21

2020: Part I 8/23/19, Part II 2/19/20, Part III 8/17/20

2019: Part 1 10/28/19 (posted by notin), Part I 10/29/18, Part II 6/27/19

2018: Part I 10/9/17

2017: Part I 10/10/16, Part II 3/30/17, Part III 7/31/17

2016: No Part Listed 4/24/16

Seems like he could make one as we get closer to the trade deadline? I like the idea of a pre offseason, post offseason, post trade deadline segmentation. IDK. 

 

 

[mvp 78]

16 minutes ago, notin said:

Per StatCast, his arm is strong but he has about as much range as Will Ferrell…

He was always a good to great range guy before. Very weird. 

[JoeBrady]

2 hours ago, Old Red said:

I thought Mayer was supposed to be the next big thing at SS?

Nope.

[mvp 78]

2 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

Nope.

The comp has always been Brandon Crawford. He's still on that schedule TBH. I don't think his defense will be as good though. 

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

1 hour ago, notin said:

Per StatCast, his arm is strong but he has about as much range as Will Ferrell…

Did you even watch Wedding Crashers? He not only invented the concept, but extended it to funerals! 

It's all reviewable data, every rerun.

[mvp 78]

Red Sox 2nd half swoon incoming...

According to the article, 1/3rd of teams were using AI for various in game decisions (substitutions, pitch calling, other in game decisions). At least 6 are now calling pitches from the dugout and may be using AI to do so.

Some teams are not happy with this decision and it's "caused quite the stir" but the move is to stop additional apps from being installed on the MLB provided Ipads after restrictions had been recently loosened. 

 

[moonslav59]

I just arrived in Maine (Sebago Lake.)

Hope to catch a Sea Dogs game.

[drewski6]

10 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

I just arrived in Maine (Sebago Lake.)

Hope to catch a Sea Dogs game.

I like that Maine beer, I think they call it "lunch" its pricey but very good.

[drewski6]

Good time to be in Maine, lobster season.

[drewski6]

I had a roll not to long ago, but it was just okay.  The best ones are where the are like almost whole claws, this one was chopped and the pieces inside could have been more succulent.

[mvp 78]

10 minutes ago, drewski6 said:

I like that Maine beer, I think they call it "lunch" its pricey but very good.

No political posts. 

[notin]

23 hours ago, mvp 78 said:

He was always a good to great range guy before. Very weird. 

Adames or Ferrell?  I don’t agree on both…

[notin]

22 hours ago, 5GoldGlovesOF,75 said:

Did you even watch Wedding Crashers? He not only invented the concept, but extended it to funerals! 

It's all reviewable data, every rerun.

THAT is where you show his range?  Same narcissistic slob, but in a much smaller role?  
 

You could have at least gone with Stranger Than Fiction…

[mvp 78]

8 minutes ago, notin said:

Adames or Ferrell?  I don’t agree on both…

Adames previously had good range. Terrible this year. 

[mvp 78]

7 minutes ago, notin said:

THAT is where you show his range?  Same narcissistic slob, but in a much smaller role?  
 

You could have at least gone with Stranger Than Fiction…

I would have gone with The Landlord. Brilliant piece of work there. 

[notin]

1 minute ago, mvp 78 said:

Adames previously had good range. Terrible this year. 

Yes, and in his age 30 season.  The wuestion does pop up about whether or not this is a permanent thing, the result of an injury, or just a statistical fluke.

I think he is neither available nor on Boston’s radar, so this is a SF problem..

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

15 minutes ago, notin said:

THAT is where you show his range?  Same narcissistic slob, but in a much smaller role?  
 

You could have at least gone with Stranger Than Fiction…

Ya, well, you can name his whole list of career roles, but I'll still take the one where he inspired a few proteges to range between Rachel McAdams and Isla Fisher.

[mvp 78]

10 minutes ago, notin said:

Yes, and in his age 30 season.  The wuestion does pop up about whether or not this is a permanent thing, the result of an injury, or just a statistical fluke.

I think he is neither available nor on Boston’s radar, so this is a SF problem..

I have the same questions as you. I'm on record as not wanting him here, especially at his price tag.

[drewski6]

18 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

I would have gone with The Landlord. Brilliant piece of work there. 

I like when he plays the devil in the SNL skit with Garth Brooks

[moonslav59]

We aren't going to get much for Duran, Bello, KC, Romero types.

Thinks lats year, when everybody complained about not doing enough (My self included.) Teams insisted on Tolloe or Early. Anthony or Mayer, too, but not many here wanted any of those 4 traded.

I think AZ wanted Early for a 2 month rental in Merrill Kelly.

To get a really meaningful add, think Early, Arias or Eyanson.

[FredLynn]

On 7/16/2026 at 8:45 AM, mvp 78 said:

I like Pena, but wouldn't expect 5 WAR out of him in a single season again. 

The FLOPS don't need a SS. We have Story.......oh wait. Never mind.

[mvp 78]

11 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

We aren't going to get much for Duran, Bello, KC, Romero types.

Thinks lats year, when everybody complained about not doing enough (My self included.) Teams insisted on Tolloe or Early. Anthony or Mayer, too, but not many here wanted any of those 4 traded.

I think AZ wanted Early for a 2 month rental in Merrill Kelly.

To get a really meaningful add, think Early, Arias or Eyanson.

Bennett, Tolle... Those are the five guys people will ask for. Everyone else in the system isn't enough. The potpourri trades don't get it done. 

[mvp 78]

5 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

The FLOPS don't need a SS. We have Story.......oh wait. Never mind.

He'll be back to striking out all the time and throwing the ball to the stands sooner than we hope. Will he outhit Cheng?!?!?

[moonslav59]

5 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

The FLOPS don't need a SS. We have Story.......oh wait. Never mind.

That pretty much sums it up, and since we cannot be sold on Seigler being the 2B solution, we could add a SS with the idea that maybe they slide to 2B eventually.

[notin]

38 minutes ago, drewski6 said:

I like when he plays the devil in the SNL skit with Garth Brooks

I preferred Jason Sudeikas as the devil, taking credit for the latest Astros’ World Series win…

[moonslav59]

Just now, mvp 78 said:

He'll be back to striking out all the time and throwing the ball to the stands sooner than we hope. Will he outhit Cheng?!?!?

If Story comes back, maybe he can play 2B with Seigler. We have to get a SS that forces Tracy to make that move.

A Monasterio-Cheng platoon is far away from that.

[notin]

5 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

If Story comes back, maybe he can play 2B with Seigler. We have to get a SS that forces Tracy to make that move.

A Monasterio-Cheng platoon is far away from that.

The Sox have three shortstops better defensively than Story already.  It doesn’t help that two are on the IL right now…