ksushi

I really hope we don't get swept by the jays. Why did Beckett have to go and give up two bombs?

Gonzalez is no stiff, pull your head out of the sand. Defense was the priority at SS, I bet you were one of the Anything we have for Tejada people.

At this point though, we don't really have a fifth starter, I would say thats a pretty big problem. Considering we have a deep bullpen and more than one option at closer, I would say its more important to have a fifth starter.

Wow dude, wow. Calm down. One loss. Great game pitched by Beckett, saw some awesome things from foulke and Papelbon and you seem like you're ready to jump. Teams don't go 150-12. I think we will be O.K. Seanez has looked kinda flat, but you know what, if that ump calls that pitch 3-2 by Foulke correctly, we're talking about a 13th inning and potentially a red sox win. We need something out of Tavarez and Seanez, I don't care which one, and since Seanez has looked bad and Tavarez has been pretty good and has a better track record, I agree, give his spot to a Delcarmen or a Martinez and let a kid get some learning done in the bigs. Not so tough a loss, because it had its highs, but I do think it is very important to take this series. Beckett was excellent through 7, granted he threw a lot of pitches, he did not have his best stuff and I can honestly say that when I guy doesn't have his best stuff, its best to not throw him out in the 8th. I'm not blaming tito, you could go either way on that, but Beckett struggled with command and his curve all game long but he battled like an ace. You can't take anything away from him. Some days you come with it, some days you don't. About the Stern thing, the reason he went down is because the Sox want to see him get 400ish AB's somewhere and develop him as a player. AAA was the final destination for him. He could be a great 4th OFer next year. What people don't realize is not only do the sox have a young core coming up in Pedroia Lester Papelbon and Hansen, but they have a great group of guys coming who can do little things. Machado will be a great utility guy, Delcarmen and Martinez in the bullpen and Stern to play as a 4th outfielder. This team will have incredible depth in the field and in the pen for years to come. Not to mention a hell of a rotation with Beckett Papelbon and Lester down the road.

this was one of the best things ive heard all day. thats awesome. Yeah, good start by Beckett, too bad he kinda fell apart in the end, no big deal. Won't hold it against him. Great game for the Sox bullpen... until rudy.

And.... he's out of it. Officially. Two opposite field shots. I want everyone who was bitching about Manny's slump to apologize.

I was being completely sarcastic. Harris looked bad in every AB today.

Harris is so good. He is really a great guy to have fill in. Great AB's.

Papelbon has proven that he has the ability to start. Remember when everyone said he couldn't get the job done against the angels and he shut them out for five innings? Remember when he said he was only working on specific things, and he would begin to pitch well towards the end of ST and then he did exactly that? The kid can flat out pitch. He will be a starter, and a good one. I expect if Wells does indeed hang up the cleets, Papelbon will be in the rotation.

Manny didn't hit another homerun? Omg, hes slumping.

MANNY IS GOING TO RIGHTFIELD!!! MANNY HAS HIT OPPO!!! That my friends, means Manny is being Manny.

When he hit that, my computer lagged with the ball still half way to the plate, it froze for a second and I called that home run. Fastballs down and in are Ortiz's favorite. Thats awesome.

Anyone that good can pitch on my team any day... now I just need a team. In the meantime though, I'd love to see him pitch for the sox because he's an ace. Add one more ace to this staff and I think that gives us three. Ok.

Occasionally Ordway has something good to say, and there are sometimes other guys whose names I don't really pay attention to who know a good deal but for the most part listening to EEI is tough. They say a lot of stupid things. I remember once when Ordway said that Papelbon wasn't going to ever be a factor on this team, ever. He argued that Papelbon would never in his career have double digit wins and over a full season that he would never be able to keep his ERA under 4.

Man is a direct address. Place commas before and after, please. Kidding. Kazmir was really great today. I hate it when the Devil Rays beat us though. It really rubs me the wrong way. We shouldn't lose to the Rays, the Royals or the Orioles. It hurts.

If someone had Izturis caliber defense with say... a bill mueller caliber bat, thats different. I'd make that move, but thats not something thats out there.

I don't think anyone said they expect him to contribute greatly to our offense. Its pretty laughable that you keep bringing that up. The thing you have to consider when thinking of a guy like Izturis is what you would have to give up. I personally am not interested in trading anyone of any skill for a slight upgrade over what we already have. Gonzalez is as good a defender as there is, defense being the priority at short, I see no reason to go out and get a guy who might hit more, possibly giving up prospects to get him. No thanks.

I didn't say anywhere that he is going to bust out with the bat. He is probably gonna hit .250 or .240 I said that earlier, he is great because of what he does to our defense. At a crucial position like shortstop he helps our pitching staff with his range. jsinger maybe you should relax. Im not saying hes gonna be on the hall of fame ballot or anything, champ. All im saying is that he is a great player to have on our team. He is. I'm not putting him up with Vlad and A-rod and Manny, I am saying he is an excellent defender who brings a lot to the Red Sox.

Anyone who bothers to mention batting average this early in the season is wasting their time.

No hes a great player to have. I stand by that. When he hits .250 or even .240 Ill stand by that. Having that energy and stability in your defense improves your team ten fold. Great. Don't bother to say that because he has never won a gold glove he isn't a great fielder. That means nothing. A gold glove goes to the best hitter with the best glove, not the guy with the best glove. It has a lot to do with your bat.

Could Martinez become a Hansen-esque prospect? It seems like hes dominant, hes got all the tools, and the sox said in december that he and Jesus Delgado could be in the Red Sox bullpen this year should someone falter early on. Jesus Delgado was dealt to the Marlins for Beckett, but Martinez is still around. He is 24, not exactly someone they will baby.

Definetly. Hes solid. Hes a great player.

Cabrera, Pedro, or Tris Speaker (way former)

There are two factors people are overlooking about Pena's bad defense: 1) Fenway is incredibly tough to play when you are familiar with it. Pena isn't the best defender - certainly not this bad, but not good - and he is not at all familiar with fenway. Bad combo. 2) He played in the biggest pressure vaacum in the united states: cincinatti. Hes playing infront of a rough rough crowd now. New to him for sure. He is watching his step, trying too hard, and failing. It gets better from here.

When Hansen is called up, hes not going to assume the closer role. Its not inconcievable to have them both pitching out of the same bullpen. It all depends on Foulke. Foulke right now is setting up Papelbon, but likely, soon it will be reversed so that Papelbon can be stretched out. Then Hansen would likely take Papelbons bullpen spot, and set up for Foulke. If they go that route, i assume thats how it would go.