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No one who is shortsighted is thinking about that. Sorry 700, I think you're wrong bud. The way this team will be run is with a view toward the future at all times. They simply aren't going to throw this guys arm off if he is ineffective and tired. You have a history of having reactionary and impulsive comments about what to do with players and how immediate performance is a reflection on the FO's ability to put together a better team. Too many people were ready and willing to hang Julio Lugo and Coco Crisp and Dustin Pedroia (and Josh Beckett) when they started out slowly. They have all turned it around nicely. Dice K's value will be determined in a few years. At this point, he was a great signing whether or not he is tired in the playoffs. Again, the front office is thinking about how he will do in the future, given the 100+ million they invested in him for SIX (not 2/3 of one a700 but) SIX years.

Mediocre "other" pitches get clobbered in the 'bigs. Chamberlain's FB and SLD are very impressive so that offsets his 3/4 pitches a bit, but if those pitches aren't good enough they will get destroyed as if he were just some crappy pitcher on the Pirates or Rangers.

Good win for the Sox. This looks like a playoff team. I can't assure myself that they will win the WS, but I think they look solid heading into the playoffs... even without Manny.

A) I don't know why anyone is shocked about players taking HGH B ) The "as long as they're not on it now" thing is problematic, as there is no test for HGH now and some players look bigger than ever. I would guess that something like half of all players in the MLB have used HGH at one point or another, as it is essentially a miracle drug. c) I think the NFL's problem with HGH is just as large but getting much less play, as the NFL is everyone's darling league these days. I can imagine a guy like Dustin Pedroia doing what he does without HGH, but 6-2, 260 lbs guys shouldn't be running 4.5 40's.

I don't think the Angels own us at all. The games tend to be close but these teams are actually pretty similar. They are both built on good pitching and a solid bullpen with some pretty good offense. The Sox offense is better relative to the Angels pitching than the Angels offense is relative to Sox pitching... if that makes sense. The Yankees offense is the one wildcard. I think the Sox can stay close with any teams' best pitcher, but that Yankees offense can make any pitcher look bad at any time, including anyone the Sox have to throw at them (not counting Buchholz, who could be the ace in the hole). I still like the Sox chances against the Yankees and feel it would be a good series, but of all the teams they are the ones I fear most. Damon, Jeter, Abreu, A-Rod, Giambi, Matsui, Posada, Cano and Cabrera are a formidable lineup indeed. It is likely that, if things go the sox' way, we will have to play either the Angels or the Yankees at some point in the playoffs, and I would much prefer to play the Angels. Less stressful to watch as every opposing inning won't have the chance to put 10 runs on the board with Mariano Rivera warming in the 'pen. I would prefer to avoid the most stressful moments possible.

Nice work.

I think this team will be best suited with Youkilis WAY down at the bottom of the order. He is a very good hitter, in my opinion, but he doesn't have much power and this hurts his production. If this team's offense is where they want it to be (perhaps at the end of this season or next) he should be batting 7th, 8th, or 9th with Lugo. I think when he's hot he is a Robinson Cano type hitter, not in terms of Cano's power, but Youkilis' OBP is considerably better. They are both threatening bats at the bottom of the lineup and make their offenses' that much more potent. Ellsbury-CF Pedroia-2B Ortiz-DH Ramirez-LF Lowell-3B Drew-RF Youkilis-1B Varitek-C Lugo-SS That's what Ellsbury gives you that Crisp doesn't. If Drew continued to suck I would play Crisp in RF and take the bonus excellent defense, comparable OBP and more run scoring ability.

THis s*** is pretty funny to read. Hey Gom. Are you reading this? You were so damn cocky about the Yankees being SO much better than the Red Sox, and so damn condecending. I'm pretty sure I just watched the Yankees fall 8 games out of 1st place. Is it injuries? No. Their pitching just sucks. One of the things about posting on this site is that while MOST people will forget about what you write, but I will use the "search" tool and call you out when it is appropriate. Have the Sox won the division yet? Of course not. Are they unquestionably NOT in the top 8 teams in the AL. Well, you can answer that one.

Does anyone actually see a slump where the Sox lost more games than they win from here on out? I mean, seriously, when they were struggling they were still playing .500 ball. Given that every game counts we will be seeing Papelbon ANY time the game is close, we will see fewer days off and even our best pitchers pitching on short rest if necessary. Remember, the Sox have another gear they can put it into here, marked "desperate". They, unlike the Yankees, haven't had to do that yet. How many innings would Buchholz have thrown if he were on the Yankees this season? 75?

I thought this was a discussion about the Sox 2007 Draft?

I agree that we can't count them out until they are mathematically eliminated. However, I think there are a number of reasons that Red Sox Nation is more optimistic about this season than other seasons. For one, the Sox rotation has no huge holes in it right now. The Yankees do. They were talking about putting Igawa in for Mussina, Hughes has looked shaky, etc., Secondly, the rotation for the sox is clearly better. You can say "Their Top 3+ Lineup > OUt Top 3 + Lineup" but I don't necessarily agree. I think our top 3 is better than their top three, our lineup may not be better but it certainly isn't a slouch by any stretch. The Sox get on base a ton, they draw lots of walks, and if Papi is starting to come around then their production already increases by a whole lot. Furthermore, the Yankees top three is decent but it isn't dominant by any stretch. There isn't a single pitcher in the top three (excepting, perhaps Wang on a good day) who will pitch a CG or even 8 IP. The Sox bullpen is superior to the Yankees pen and Rivera is succeptable to the Sox bats, so I'm confident with the Sox going against any Yankee pitcher starter or reliever. If Joba Chamberlain is their savior then I feel confident. He's very good, but at less than 10 IP he's just waiting to give up a few runs. Overall, the Yankees are 14 games above .500. The Red Sox are 29 games above .500. The Yankees are chasing a tenacious, young, and energetic Seattle team by 2 games in the WC with a tough-ish schedule remaining. Nothing is assured, but I understand why there is so much confidence in this team. Their record doesn't feel lucky at all. In the past it has seemed like they are playing above their heads. In fact, this season, the Sox run differential should have them at 83-48 (rather than 80-51) so they are getting a bit unlucky. This team is much better constructed than any of the past teams were, filled with veterans like Lowell, Varitek, Lugo, Manny, Ortiz, Youkilis, Timlin, Gagne, Schilling, Beckett, Wakefield, Mirabelli, Cora, etc., and non-shaky young/rookie guys like Pedroia, Matsuzaka and Okajima. I like the Sox roster much more than the Yankees roster in terms of solid veteran leadership and consistency.

It's funny because you even look bad insulting your own team. Your assessment is pretty far off on many levels. Hughes will be fine. He's extremely young and shouldn't necessarily be pitching at this level at this point. You're willing to given Chamberlain the world even though he's thrown--what?--fewer than 10 IP. What a joke Gom. Do you take yourself seriously or do you just vent whatever comes into your brain? Furthermore, why get on Jacksonian for Hughes' performance. Even if he liked the guy his preference has nothing to do with how Hughes is used. In fact, if you're going to critique anyone go ahead and critique Cashman for setting up a team that needs to rely on a 21 year old down the stretch in big games against good teams like the Tigers just to battle for a Wild Card spot. I hope you're prepared to swallow your words in a year or two when Hughes is one of the best pitchers in the AL.

Am I the only one that wants ALL wild card teams to lose? I don't like it when the WC team comes in on fire, historically that has worked out well for that team. I don't like the Sox vs. Mariners match-up (although I like the prospect of being able to go to a game or two in Seattle) given how the Sox have played there the past few years, coupled with the mere existence of Felix Hernandez. I would be perfectly happy if the Mariners, Tigers, Guardians, Angels and Yankees lost for the rest of the season.

this is where I start reminding people who were jumping ship that it is ALWAYS beneficial to let a whole season play out before claiming that a certain player sucks or that a team sucks. Players with a proven track record come back to their proven averages more often than not. Do not be shocked to see JD Drew do the same next year (perhaps minus some HR power).

Nothing profound there. Except that nobody will take Lugo's contract and the revolving door would just continue. A-Rod likely isn't coming here, but if he does Lugo has played 3B before and he could also function as next year's Alex Cora (for a boatload more $$). We don't have a great replacement waiting for Tek, but there is no way, NO WAY that Posada becomes a Red Sox. None. Stop even thinking about it. It is Varitek's job, he's not going to come in and replace the captain, and he's not going to come in and sit on the bench.

And at 16 I would sure take that to the bank. They're all safe gambles.

I love the idea of having Crisp and Ellsbury in the same outfield. I guess I would prefer to see if Drew can man LF, as he is slower and has a pretty good arm to keep players from scoring when the Monster is behind him. They would obviously need to add power to the lineup in the form of an A-Rod type player, and I'm less convinced that is possible. At this point I have a really hard time seeing them sign A-Rod... then again, I have a hard time imagining ANYONE signing him for 30m a season. I think that's simply too much for any player, even A-Rod. We're in a win-win situation with Youkilis. If he sticks around we have plus defensive corner man, who gets on base at a remarkable rate and who is still young and pretty cost effective. If we end up dealing him then everyone here would happily predict that he would be part of a pretty significant move. He wouldn't net us just Chris Carter, that's for sure. Ellsbury should be leading off for the Big Red Sox for sure. He's going to put up at least a .350 OBP, but probably higher given his track record. He'll score a ton of runs and finally, FINALLY solidify the top of that lineup: Ellsbury Pedroia Ortiz Manny etc..,

It's never too early to start looking ahead. I'd be willing to bet the Sox FO has tentative chart listing their projected lineups/rosters up through 2010, so 2008 isn't too early to discuss, is it? So here it goes: First, a list of FA's available for next year, provided by Cot's: http://mlbcontracts.blogspot.com/2000/04/2007-free-agents.html Starting Pitching: I think it is safe to assume that this team will stay largely intact for next year. I am hopeful that they can replace Curt Schilling with Clay Buchholz, and keep the rest of the pitching staff largely intact. I don't see any FA's that would be way better than Schilling, and certainly none worth signing to long-term deals. The only cavaet to losing Schilling is if the Sox win it all this year and Wakefield decides to hang it up, AND Schilling's asking price for a final season is reasonable (say, 9m): Beckett Matsuzaka Wakefield/Schilling Lester Buchholz Relief Pitching: This group may have some players coming and going. The Sox threw out a wide net this past off-season, acquiring guys like Donnelly, Romero, Okajima and Pineiro. Most of them have not panned out, but I think it is understandable why they made the attempt. The current pen of Snyder, Tavarez, Timlin, Delcarmen, Gagne, Okajima, and Papelbon has been solid, but I think that Snyder, Tavarez, Timlin and Gagne are question-marks for next year. It is possible the Sox would make a strong move to resign Gagne, given that he may come at a reasonable price and may yet have some positive results. Chances are, however, that he will want to close and will look elsewhere (Cleveland, perhaps?). So that leaves 3 pretty big holes in the pen. I expect Craig Hansen to fill one of those holes (he's 2-0, with a 1.62 ERA in his last ten appearances--16.2 IP--and has 21 K's in that time. He's also worked hard to bring his gastly ERA down to a reasonable 4.30 and has nearly a K/IP on the season overall). Otherwise, I'm unsure where they will go for relief help. Scott Linebrink would be a great addition, but he's sure to be looking for either a closer position or closer money. I'd be fine with closer money for Linebrink and letting Gagne walk, but the 'pen is always a crapshoot. I expect another wide net in terms of looking for RP help. Offense: I think there are two directions this team can go offensively. Either they will keep a team very similar to what they had this year (possibly exactly the same), or they will make drastic changes to help the team move forward. I consider the following positions to be locks to remain the same next season: C, 2B, SS, CF, RF, DH. That leaves questions of: 3B--Lowell LF--Manny 1B--Youkilis Looking at the available players, I don't see any who are upgrades for any of these guys. At the same time, the recent move for Carter--and a lot of the sentiment around here--leans toward doing something differently. If this Sox team had the offense of the past few years with this pitching staff, they would win more than 100 games, hands down. They aren't going to get back to the 900+ runs of a few years ago no matter what they do, given that they won't add a player like Teixeira to a lineup already possessing Ortiz and Ramirez. So, this begs the question, is the lineup we see currently the same as next year's lineup? I have a very hard time believing that they will make a serious run at Alex Rodriguez, who will demand 30+ million and is unlikely to want to play in Boston. An addition of a guy like Adam Dunn might be nice, but he would need to play the OF or DH, and there doesn't appear to be space, assuming the Sox are sticking with Drew (who I assume will have a better looking year next year) and Ramirez. I'm open to the idea of moving Manny, given that he has only one year left and is valuable to other teams. I'm also open to the idea of keeping him. Remarkably, even though they have struggled to score runs the 2007 Red Sox are actually FOURTH in all of baseball in runs scored. I found that staggering, and wondered if the stats were watching the same team that I've seen lately. But it is apparently true. So does the offense need an upgrade, and if so, where? CF seems locked between Crisp and Ellsbury. RF is locked and LF appears to be locked. Lowell is a FA and may prefer playing somewhere else, in which case a guy like Carter is pretty valuable. In fact, given the FA class at 1B he already appears valuable. Overall, I don't forsee a whole lot of changes to this team for next year, and that seems kind of hard to swallow. Although they have had a great year, I find them to be an overall clumsy and offensively boring team with little pop, aside from Ortiz and Lowell. Probably a little too harsh for a team in first place and looking strong, but I don't think my feelings are unique around here. They are a great team, but they should be destroying other teams with their coaching, philosophy, approach and--of course--payroll. Instead they are 'merely' winning... hmmm, perhaps I need to re-evaluate... I would be interested in getting Fukudome from Japan next year, and perhaps also in moving Coco Crisp for a decent reliever or as a bigger package for a really good player. I would love for them to blow other teams out of the water for an offer on Miguel Cabrera, such as Crisp, Bowden, Masterson and Moss plus a ton of money... that doesn't blow teams out of the water, but you catch my drift. Aside from a move like that, however, I just don't see a whole lot of changes... What do other people think?

I think you're right, and I also think that you're right about the defense vs. offense thing above. Youkilis has turned into an excellent defensive 1B, and with a full winter of working on 1B I don't see why Carter can't get better. There are some guys out there who play 1B who are pretty bad offensively. If he hits he'll be worth it.

Lin vs. Almanzar as prospects. Please elaborate... Both are very high priced international signings. Almanzar obviously is an enormous guy, and very young. But from what I've read Lin has quite an upside. Any thought given to bumping him above Moss or Reddick based on his history and the tools he brings? I like this list, it seems pretty solid.

Buchholz and Hughes are different pitchers. I appreciate your honest appraisal, but they are definitely different. Hughes has a Clemens-type body. I'm not sure what Buchholz has, but he is very tall ane lean (not taller than Hughes, but tall-and-leaner). As he grows into his body I think he will continue to improve his stamina. I still think very highly of Hughes.

You can work on fielding. This is a guy who, at only 24 years old, has two AAA seasons (nearly) under his belt where he finished around .900 OPS. He is consistently near .400 in OBP and appears to have some pop, with almost 20HR and nearly 100 RBI in both of those seasons. I certainly don't think it is unreasonable to expect this kid to contribute to the big club at some point, as his AAA seasons are reminescent of Tino Martinez's AAA seasons.