ksushi

I love the Pena trade, I think if given the chance to get corner outfield talent like that you have to do it. I doubt he will be going anywhere at the deadline. Ervin Santana is most probably nothing more than a pipe dream at this point. If we could get him, I would send any position player prospect in our organization to get the bat (soriano, carlos lee etc.) to then swing to the angels for Santana. I would trade any position player for it including Pena. I don't think it will happen though. Ramon Ortiz was mentioned earlier in this thread and that is a name I like a lot. I don't know if Washington will deal him, but I'd love to see him land here if they do intend to send him packing. I don't think his price tag will be too too high either. Another guy to think about is Russ Ortiz. Definetly a junk heap signing. Chances are he would be junk too. If I were Theo I would give it a chance right now. Clement is a mess, Ortiz could do no worse.

Ramon Ortiz is a guy who is pretty intruiging actually, Thompson was mentioned by gammons on the radio today. He isn't a terrible option, but yeah, Ortiz is a guy who I would try to pry away.

What Zito and Willis will cost is completely out of range when you look at what the sox will be willing to pay. They will both cost you Lester AND Hansen. No doubt about that. Probably Ellsbury or Pedroia and some lower level guys like Bowden or Soto. No thanks. An attainable guy that can fill the 4 slot is John Thompson. Clement and Bucholz or Clement and Alvarez can realistically get done and net you a guy like Thompson.

Tavarez and Seanez probably couldn't be dealt for a 29 year old lawn mower.

Craig Hansens control 'issues' or at least the appearance of them in the statistics come from his learning a change up and having to use his secondary pitches where he would normally be using that 96 mph heater he has very good control over to get ahead of hitters.

You're a moron, I'm sorry. This really isn't as personal as it sounds but cause in other sections of the boards at times I've noticed your pretty tolerable - even likable . I have to say though, you're overall outlook on baseball and how the Sox should be run makes me want to jump off of a bridge to think that we are fans of the same team! The whole point of having a farm system is to filter these guys in and let them contribute at low cost and build a strong team around them. Lester is not an experiment! He is the future of our rotation very likely and he will be in the rotation until Wells comes back and all of next year. I'm really shocked that you hate everyone under the age of 30 who hasn't already won a Cy Young. If we let kids get their toes wet like you say they would be 29 when they get their first full season in! ala youkilis. MDC is not getting moved up and down because they want that, he is only doing that because there hasn't been wide open roster space for him. Gah! *chokegargle...die*

Considering that most of the hits came today, when he really got ripped in the first and second inning, those stats are going to make him look a lot worse than he is. Of course if you go by the line all the time you won't always see the ability someone has. That said, Pauley isn't ready for a big league season and its probably best he gets his learning in down in AAA which will be a more friendly environment. He is 22, has good stuff, you might want to not bash him right off the bat because you'll probably be seeing more of him. He is actually a good pitching prospect to have.

I'm psyched for Pauley, I think the move up for AAA is awesome. He earned it. I think he has to know now that he has a spot on the ML club come next year.

Tek deserved the day off, he is a catcher you have to save his knees for september. Funny thing is, Francona will keep sitting him in Francona. Still, Francona is not the type of manager who will do small things that pay off immediately. He will, however, make the moves that will pay off over the course of a season and win us games over the long haul. He does a good enough job handling the team in game, but over the course of the season is where he will earn his money. He drives you nuts sometimes, but he is the kind of guy you want to play for. I've grown to understand and like Terry Francona.

GET YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE CHECKED, ITS OK. kidding. but seriously, I don't think Tavarez was so bad considering what Francona has asked him to do the past couple days under the weight of a thin banged up 'pen.

It was asking a ton, and he has surpassed any previous expectations by even making it past the 5th inning in each of his three starts. The guy showed guts and he doesn't deserve some of the ripping he has got after toronto and a little bit by some today. AAA is probably exactly what the doctor ordered and then hopefully we will see you in 07, Pauley. He's already sort of a yankee killer. Sort of...

Pauley is not a bad pitcher, he certainly doesn't deserve AA. Complaining about a sinker baller keeping the ball too low is a pretty awful point to try to make and I don't think thats his trouble. He has good stuff, he just hasn't been in a league yet where hitters make serious adjustments to the way he pitches. AAA will hopefully be where he can call home for the next year or so to let him hone his craft, but David Pauley is 22 and he is a good pitcher. He'll be heard from again. He showed some composure to come back and pitch 3 solid innings after getting hit around. I was impressed with that. Pawtucket will help refine his game a little bit and maybe he will be getting that nasty breaker over for strikes more often. If he could do that, hes got four plus pitches he can work hitters with.

Not much, it doesn't matter how well your team hits if you put pitchers up in the zone when you're a sinkerballer.

Pauley pitched a good few innings after the bump in the road in the 2nd. You can't give Texas too much to hit, you just can't.

I hope they don't quickly send Pauley down, that would really be the way to crush the kids psyche. He is a good pitcher, he deserves a spot on the team for the time being with Wells being down Foulke and Clement possibly going down too. He better at least be kept at AAA if they are just going to throw him back in the minors.

Francona had to leave him out there, with a double header coming up and guys being unavailable in the pen, who else was he going to get three innings out of? You'd be saying the same thing about Seanez if it happened to him.

I Don't know what rem was talking about. Sure he didn't have great command but the pitch to matthews and the pitch to Texiera at least were good pitches. Usually the kind of pitch he makes outs on. Sometimes they just get the barrel of the bat on it and it doesn't work out in the pitchers favor. Tough luck.

This is awful. I like pauley too much to keep watching this. He is getting his head beat in.

How do you expect to get rookies experience other than letting them play?

I've got a good one: his house has not yet been searched by federal agents looking for steroids!

I want to call you out on this. What makes you think he will amount to the least? The fact that he really didn't get much in the way of hype prior to his start in new york? His scouting report has always ready that he has four plus pitches, pounds the strike zone, and is a smart coachable player. The only off this guy has is that he will never have and never has had a 95 mph fastball like some of our other prospects. I liked Pauley before, I had no idea he was capable of this kind of stuff or even that the FO had him on their radar as a call up, but I liked his report and I liked his fastball because of its movement. He is good. Its the same with Chris Smith. He has put up numbers, he throws softer, but hes got a good curveball. I'm not sure if a guy like Chris Smith will ever do anything at the major league level, but you never know he is a good guy to have in the organization in case he does end up being one of those lightning in a bottle call ups like Pauley has the chance to be. Pauley isn't going to amount to the least of all of these guys I'll tell you that. Pauley isn't junk. I'm not saying he is great, but he reminds me a lot of Brad Radke in the way that he uses his fastball sinker and change. He is a smart pitcher. I don't mean to jump on you, but I have to back up a good player when I see one. Traditionally people tend to think a guy is no good unless he blows 98mph smoke past people. Kind of like how in Moneyball Beane made his case for Zito and took him instead of sheets, and Zito quickly went on to win a Cy Young and is probably a better more consistent pitcher to this point despite not throwing nearly as a hard. Its not always about velocity. I always get on people for saying Wakefield is a wiffleballer blah blah. I called JT the Brick once to take him up on that but they wouldn't air me, probably because I am much more the man than that earthling.

oh i know, its so annoying he does that like three times a game at least. WAY BACK WAY BACK!!!! caught at the warning track.

I wasn't accusing you of criticizing him. And I've read many reports on Lester, and pretty much all of them have said he has good control. I don't think I've read a report that said he had bad control.

He actually isn't that bad as he was in ST. Believe it or not Lester is good. I'm not saying this was a great start but cut the kid some slack, I'm quite impressed so far and he looks like he will come out for the 5th.

I would send him out for five, but I wouldn't be shocked if they didn't. If that was it for him, I'm pretty impressed. He got no calls, got bad defense, played a crappy game after a big delay and I have to say he kept them in it and gave a pretty good effort. Not to mention his first game in the bigs had to come with some serious nerves. Known for pretty good control in the minors, that probably explains that awesome pitch that hit the back stop on the fly. Hah. I thought the run that just came in was unearned?