Red Sox (Tolle) vs Dodgers (Yamamoto): 8/1/26, 9:10pm

[Brandon Glick]

The Boston Red Sox wrapped up July at 21-4. Their .840 win percentage is the best in a month in franchise history (min. 15 games).

In other words, good job fellas.

[Brandon Glick]

	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	TOT
Tyron Guerrero	0	0	11	0	0	11
Ryan Watson	0	12	0	0	0	12
Justin Slaten	5	0	19	0	0	24
Jovani Morán	11	13	0	0	16	40
Greg Weissert	0	0	15	10	0	25
Garrett Whitlock	11	0	13	0	0	24
Brayan Bello	0	0	0	0	58	58
Aroldis Chapman	24	0	14	11	0	49

[Bailey_Fox]

I feel that this game could go two ways. 
 

1. The Sox could keep rolling, motivated by the great win last night. 
 

2. this dodgers team could wake up.

[JoeBrady]

This is just borderline insane.  Even for those of us that believed.  What a game by Bello.  Now we have almost our entire BP available for the next two games.

[vegasbob]

Given the big win Friday. a split of the last 2 with the Dodgers  would be significant.  

Yamamoto will test them .

The 2026 July team are the new IDIOTS. Forgot they were supposed to lose.

[Brock Beauchamp]

52 minutes ago, Bailey_Fox said:

I feel that this game could go two ways. 
 

1. The Sox could keep rolling, motivated by the great win last night. 
 

2. this dodgers team could wake up.

Welcome to Talk Sox!

[FredLynn]

1 hour ago, JoeBrady said:

This is just borderline insane.  Even for those of us that believed.  What a game by Bello.  Now we have almost our entire BP available for the next two games.

Lots of Kudos to go around Bello....Rafaela...Monasterio etc. But you are wrong to assume that we have the entire bullpen available for the next two games. Not necessarily. If we need  a couple of guys tonight for an extended outing they will not be available tomorrow, potentially. One win out of the next two and we win, I believe, our eigth series in a row. 

[FredLynn]

I heard that Contreras is in a 7 day concussion IL protocol. That means he is out for the season the way our medical staff has been missing things.

[vegasbob]

4 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

Lots of Kudos to go around Bello....Rafaela...Monasterio etc. But you are wrong to assume that we have the entire bullpen available for the next two games. Not necessarily. If we need  a couple of guys tonight for an extended outing they will not be available tomorrow, potentially. One win out of the next two and we win, I believe, our eigth series in a row. 

Tra y can use Whitlock 1x over the next 2 and Chapman is better tomorrow.  

Guerrero and Slaten are best and rested available. Weissert could ge 1 or 2 outs

[Randy Red Sox]

this will be a tough matchup tonight.  Hopefully Tolle is up for the challenge.

[SPLENDIDSPLINTER]

1 hour ago, Bailey_Fox said:

I feel that this game could go two ways. 
 

1. The Sox could keep rolling, motivated by the great win last night. 
 

2. this dodgers team could wake up.

I didn't realize the Dodgers were asleep last night. Are you a sleep specialist?

[SPLENDIDSPLINTER]

Rafaela led the AL in base hits for the month of July with 33.

[moonslav59]

14 minutes ago, SPLENDIDSPLINTER said:

Rafaela led the AL in base hits for the month of July with 33.

Fred must be rolling over in his cot in his mammas basement!

[JAG]

1 hour ago, Randy Red Sox said:

this will be a tough matchup tonight.  Hopefully Tolle is up for the challenge.

I think he might be fine for 3 innings, he seems to run out of gas around 60 pitches though.

[moonslav59]

Just now, JAG said:

I think he might be fine for 3 innings, he seems to run out of gas around 60 pitches though.

Kinda like veteran Suarez, too.

[FredLynn]

25 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

Fred must be rolling over in his cot in his mammas basement!

Not at all! I am pleased that so far he seems to have turned his career around and so noted in last night’s game thread. I didn’t think he could make such an abrupt improvement. He still swings at bad pitches more than average but as long as he is producing who cares?

[moonslav59]

10 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

Not at all! I am pleased that so far he seems to have turned his career around and so noted in last night’s game thread. I didn’t think he could make such an abrupt improvement. He still swings at bad pitches more than average but as long as he is producing who cares?

It’s not abrupt and we’ve shown you over and over how he has steadily improved in many categories year after year.

you refused to believe it, and an occasional bond throw to him after many big hits is hardly admitting anything.

youve bashed him as much as praised him over this season so don’t pretend you’ve recognized him for who he is.

[Larry Cook]

True test for our offense today 

[FredLynn]

9 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

It’s not abrupt and we’ve shown you over and over how he has steadily improved in many categories year after year.

you refused to believe it, and an occasional bond throw to him after many big hits is hardly admitting anything.

youve bashed him as much as praised him over this season so don’t pretend you’ve recognized him for who he is.

The term "abrupt" means different things to different people. For me its an ABRUPT year over year improvement. I will continue to cite his contributions when appropriate-and I will continue to criticize him for swinging at bad pitches. In that way I am probably the most fair and balanced poster here.

[Nick]

25 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

Not at all! I am pleased that so far he seems to have turned his career around and so noted in last night’s game thread. I didn’t think he could make such an abrupt improvement. He still swings at bad pitches more than average but as long as he is producing who cares?

$50M for 8 years really looks good for a gold glove center fielder who is beginning to hit.

[FredLynn]

1 minute ago, Nick said:

$50M for 8 years really looks good for a gold glove center fielder who is beginning to hit.

Yes, if it continues through the rest of the season. Remember last year he tailed off at the end. I want a full season to see his final numbers. So far so good, obviously

[moonslav59]

9 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

The term "abrupt" means different things to different people. For me its an ABRUPT year over year improvement. I will continue to cite his contributions when appropriate-and I will continue to criticize him for swinging at bad pitches. In that way I am probably the most fair and balanced poster here.

Now you ard just being silly. Abrupt does not have the meaning you want it to be.

You have been more critical of Rafaela than every other Sox player combined , despite seeing him steadily, not abruptly improve in OBP, K rate, BB rate, OpS and WAR. Steady is the opposite of abrupt, dude,

[moonslav59]

10 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

Yes, if it continues through the rest of the season. Remember last year he tailed off at the end. I want a full season to see his final numbers. So far so good, obviously

Every player has ups and downs and few show the steady improvement Ceddanne has. 

[FredLynn]

6 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

Now you ard just being silly. Abrupt does not have the meaning you want it to be.

You have been more critical of Rafaela than every other Sox player combined , despite seeing him steadily, not abruptly improve in OBP, K rate, BB rate, OpS and WAR. Steady is the opposite of abrupt, dude,

I think its important for you to keep whining. I doubt I will see an abrupt improvement in that any time soon. Meanwhile I will keep doing what I think is right, that is, being impartial and fair.

To us normal people the change occured ABRUPTLY at the beginning of this year compared to the end of last year.  He sucked at the end of last year, offensively. Then, ABRUPTLY, he turned the corner this year.

Whine on though!

[moonslav59]

6 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

I think its important for you to keep whining. I doubt I will see an abrupt improvement in that any time soon. Meanwhile I will keep doing what I think is right, that is, being impartial and fair.

if being hyper critical of the Sox player showing most steady and highest growth is fair, I’m not sure what unfair could look like in your world.

if every Sox player improved as much as Ceddanne has, we’d have won a ring last year and be on pace for 120 wins this year.

[FredLynn]

3 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

if being hyper critical of the Sox player showing most steady and highest growth is fair, I’m not sure what unfair could look like in your world.

if every Sox player improved as much as Ceddanne has, we’d have won z ring last year and bf on pace for 120 wins this year.

Rafaela consistently SUCKED at the end of last year. From Aug 1 to the end of the year his OPS was .622. That is a long time period. There was no gradual improvement except in your mind. This year he is up to .781, and it started ABRUPTLY at the beginning of this year. For the first two months he improved his OPS by nearly 100 points. 

Therefore, I will continue to point out his contributions, as I do with every Flops player, when appropriate and criticize him and anyone else when they screw up. Balanced and fair. But by all means, keep whining! You seem to enjoy it so much. I would not want to deprive you of your joy.

[vegasbob]

Definitely need 5 innings+ from Tolle which by itself is a tall order, but doable.   Then the BP of Weissert Slaten , Guerroero and Whitlock, only if leading in the 8th,  can finish it.      

Prefer to save Whitlock and Chapman for Sunday's game and the sweep.

[FredLynn]

12 minutes ago, vegasbob said:

Definitely need 5 innings+ from Tolle which by itself is a tall order, but doable.   Then the BP of Weissert Slaten , Guerroero and Whitlock, only if leading in the 8th,  can finish it.      

Prefer to save Whitlock and Chapman for Sunday's game and the sweep.

Yamamoto is about half a run in ERA better than Tolle this year. He is tough. Of the three games this is going to be the most difficult, especially without Contreras out there.