ksushi

The reason the sox are slumping isn't because Manny and Ortiz are slumping. Ortiz has had a rough week or so and Manny has been cold, but offenses go through dry spells. Our staff needs to be stronger. Without Schilling, we don't fall in line as well. We need another SP and we're over the top and if Schill can come back firing on all cylinders again, we have the best rotation in baseball going away if we go out and get someone. I would deal Lester, Bowden and Ellsbury for Roy Oswalt. I would deal Lester, Hansen and Murphy for Buehrle... One of those deals puts us over the top. Our lineup is fine. Crisp has been our ignitor lately and he is taking it easy on that thumb... I'm not worried about hitting at the moment. Imagine Oswalt in a sox uni? ... Sorry, I'm lame.

Trading Lowell would be a huge mistake. Great club house guy, good on field contributor.

Biggest snubs - John Maine, Hanley Ramirez, Orlando Cabrera, Sheff, and Youk? Any other big ones?

Bringing up hitters pre-maturely is a lot less detrimental to their development than pitchers, provided you can get them regular AB's. Look at Jose Reyes, he was brought up waaaaayyy to early when he was like 20. Hit something like .250 - .260 in his sophmore season shortened by injury and came back and hit .270 the next year and that was low for a guy who was projected to do big things. Well with regular playing time, he progressed and is now absolutely f***in' awesome. Pitchers can get roughed up bad and not really come back to regain form for whatever reason. I'm not worried about them exposing Ellsbury to the majors too early. I think he's fine. I do think there has to be a trade in the works. Either they are pulling a showcase and having Ellsbury up before including him in a deal (ala Hanley Ramirez the season before he was dealt) or perhaps they've asked Crisp not to play through the injury because a deal is being discussed?

Manny has been looking really bad against good fastballs and hasn't been Manny for awhile... I might be a little concerned.

Um... Gagne made it clear he wanted to sign as a closer... I don't think Joel was signed because we didn't wanna pay for Gagne. I think I kinda rather have that guy Theo drafted close, whats his name? Papel-something... Well whatever.

Ok, back on track? Mark Buehrle... yeah

I think Lester is a little better than a future 3-4 guy. I think he probably projects more as a 2 than a 3.

Hansen is a big dude with big stuff. He has a high 90's arm and that slider won't just dissappear. He'll finish the year in AAA and compete in ST for a bullpen spot and probably will get it because before he was rushed up here last year almost out of the gate he set the sox minor league consecutive scoreless inning record and didn't allow an ER in all of ST. The guy is a stud. He'll get it back or he will be a worse tradgedy than Cla Meredith when he is throwing pills in someone elses bullpen and we look bad.

P.S. Beckett is a big angry man with a big angry fastball. Its cool.

I thought the exact same thing when I learned Ellsbury was up. .296 over his last 30 something games in pawtucket, he made the adjustment and hit in AAA very well after a rough start. Wily Mo would have been fine over a few days while Coco healed, we've seen him in CF on consecutive nights more than once. Murphy could have done it, hell if it was just a cup of coffee Michael Tucker could have done it! Caveat: Everything I am about to say has no factual basis what so ever and is purely my own hunch. I think Kenny Williams is a genius. It's my suspicion that Williams was losing value for Buehrle (known from here on out as MB because typing Buehrle sucks) because it was widely viewed as a neccessity for him to deal MB because he was very very likely to walk at the end of the season. So, he employed 2 genuis tactics. Remember what we all thought MB could be acquired for before all this trade talk? A lot of people thought spare parts could get it done, maybe one of Hansen or Delcarmen in there... Since then, we have all been estimating it taking a Lester or an Ellsbury. Thats because Kenny asked for the world. Bucholz, Ellsbury and change. No budge. The Sox broke off talks. I think Kenny purposely asked for way more than MB was worth, and generated some extension talk leaked by the White Sox to drum up some more value and get an everyday player for now and a top prospect for later. I still the Red Sox are the most likely destination for MB for a couple of factors. By all accounts, Atlanta, The Mets, and Boston stepped to the forefront when it all started and I think those are still the teams in the fray... out of those three Boston can put together the best package. If the Sox stepped up and offered Coco, Lester, Murphy and Hansen I think that might get done and hate to say this, I think the Sox would offer that and would not be surprised if a year or two from now we all wished we had a couple of those guys particularly Lester and Hansen. So all fabricated ******** aside, I think Coco might be on the block right now and the only guy out there who makes sense to be on the Sox radar is MB, unless something is going down with the Astros... There have been qualls rumors and I don't think the Sox are too interested in Qualls hes basically Brenden Donnelly... Every year we think we know the guys that are available and on the Sox wish list and it always turns out something goes down off of everyones radar or we find out later like last year when the Sox were close to acquiring Oswalt that there is a ton going on that never hits the news papers. I wouldn't mind another Oswalt rumor though.

^ I nominate this for worst post ever. eh?

You're taking a pretty ignorant stand point since as I pointed out you aren't on the bench or in the clubhouse... so yeah... And Lopez hasn't been used as a specialist this year. He has been facing lefties and righties a like... He's come into games here and there for one lefty out and is more likely to come in if there are a couple of lefties up in one inning but he has faced righties and done well against them and has proven he can get guys out no matter where they stand at the plate. So he didn't last night... not terry's fault, chief.

Christ, if you're going to nit pick on things like that based on you're own ignorant perspective than go ahead, make a 40 page list and mail it to the guy and let him know what you think, but really thats just your opinion and chances are you aren't on the bench or in the clubhouse to know what goes into to making those calls or non-calls, so if you wanna sit around and critique every little thing the guy does... you must be pretty determined to not like the guy. He has yet to make a Little or Perlazzo-esque mistake to cost us games and he won't. Francona is a players manager that manages a bullpen conservatively and plays with his defensive replacements well. He isn't going to do something radical that could blow up in his face, but he isn't going to take big chances that might pay off either. Its his game, maybe you don't like it. And what was wrong with Lopez last night, exactly? He's been good all year.... not his fault everytime someone sucks.

Name three in game mistakes he has made this season.

Mark Buehrle's agent is saying now that the extension talks are bunk and there is nothing to it. They sent someone to talk to Buehrle but they shot down the offer I guess... Who knows if he goes to the Sox, I still think it can happen, but I definitely think he is leaving the south side.

I still hope a deal gets done, I think this news that the Sox are out of the running comes as no surprise. Theo is in the catbird seat and he can tell Williams to buzz off, probably about what happened. If he asked for Bucholz and Lester as some reports indicate and refused a 72 hour window... thats just absurd, I would tell him to take a walk too. All indications out of Chicago are that Atlanta and the Sox are the preferred trading partners and there isn't much else out there. I bet Williams re-kindles these talks with a softened stance in a week or so, this how these things work. Bucholz won't be in the deal. No question about that, but something can be worked out I'm sure. Sources from inside the ChiSox are calling the deal to Boston inevitable... It's tough to get leaks out of the Sox these days, so almost all of this is coming from Chicago... tough to discern what is actually going on when you only hear one side... its like hearing one half of someones phone call. You get the general idea, but not the specifics. The Sox could have told them no way, and no one is in any rush right now, so the talks might be at a lull but Williams is no Jim Bowden, he isn't gonna get nothing for this guy and I think the Red Sox are gonna be calling in right up until he is dealt, hard to believe otherwise.

Wow... close call again. Maybe not as close... but still annoying to me on top of the other close calls.

This sucks. Very hard to watch right now.

that 1-1 pitch looked pretty damn good

Well, he didn't get the benefit of some close calls but he looks like crap right now.

Gabbard looks pretty wild right now.

Try and explain to me how a 20 year old in AA with 95 and a wicked curve is "nothing". He is a great prospect...

Can anyone tell me why for the love of God does NESN show that damn game from '99 where Nomar hit 3 home runs in one game against the Mariners. IT WAS NOT AN EXCITING GAME. Especially not after the 20th time I've seen it. What the hell? Sorry, random, but definitely not deserving of its own thread... figured this could pass the time... go Kason!