seabeachfred

I think you, SCM, me and the whole gang should keep this in mind. Doubrant has pitched very well against the Yankees and that alone would necessitate keeping him, and also keep in mind that lefties do pretty well in the AL East facing all those LH hitters. Morales sickens me for the reason that both times he faced the Yankees he came up with an apple in his throat and got his ass reamed. I don't want him in the rotation and especially don't want him pitching against the Yankees any more than I want to see Bailey in there against them in a closing situation where in his one opportunity against them in such a role turned victory into defeat. Screw them both.

Aren't we all splitting hairs here? Fenway Park has a left field wall that is only 315 feet from home plate and it also has, what, a 37 foot Green Monster wall? This park is earmarked for RH hitters with sock. Keep in mind that you can hit it over the wall if you are a slugger and off the wall if you are solid contact hitter who can hit for good average and decent power. If you're really good you can do both. To me a LH hitter with ability to hit to all fields can hit for average but his power is limited by the spacious terrain in RF. Oh yes, Ted Williams could do it, so could Yaz and now Papi but they're the exceptions rather than the rule in my opinion. A good hitter will hit most anywhere but to me Fenway is a right hand hitter's paradise and SCM presented a pretty solid case, again in my opinion.

And a very Merry Christmas to you Ted. Here's to you and yours for a wonderful Christmas Day.

I'm staying out of this one Emmz. Besides, as two people said, why the hell are we arguing semantics anyway over elite and generational. Can't an elite hitter turn into a generational one? Cabrera has been a solid hitter since 2003 and this makes ten years he's been one of the most lethal hitters in all baseball. Hell, the guy just became the first player to win the Triple Crown in 45 years. That makes him an elite hitter in my book.....the ten years can eventually make him a generational one if he keep this kind of cannonading him. Oh God, what did I say about staying out of this? Anyway, Merry Christmas or Happy Holiday Emmz---and just take what I wrote with a fine grain of salt.

Finally got off your ignore list SCM. That's good; sorry for the misunderstanding. I take it you get just as much upset with what you thought I accused you of as I was with what you said to piss me off. Hopefully we will get along well from here on in. Now to your questions. I think the AL East is wide open next season and any one of five teams fan win it. We are NOT the favorite and we're probably not No. 2 either, but we've seen teams come from bottom to top before. I expect us to compete for the division title or WC next season. As you know I am NOT a long suffering fan having come on board just a couple of years before the team took off (lucky for me), and while I can appreciate you fans who have had to eat a lot of heartache for decades, I don't have those memories and don't want any. What happened in 2001, and the last season and one month was enough for me. I'm in complete agreement with you on those two head cases, and that outfielder if it was BJ you were referring to, well ditto on that as well. Cherington did some good things this winter so far, but Victorino was not one of them. I would have signed Cody Ross before Shane any day of the week. He wll not hit with the power that Ross did and if remains to be seen if he can handle the Fenway Park pressure. I hope he can. If t he Napoli things drags on for another couple of days I want Cherington to run like hell to the telephone and get ahold of Adam LaRoche's agent lickity split. If he can do that and also get Shane Marcum I would be more than pleased to enter the season with some hope in 2013. And please allow me to wish you a very Merry Christmas if you are Christian, or Happy Holiday if you're not.

Spitball---a drop of any kind is something we don't need for next year. We have to find ways to move up the ladder. Gomez has been floating around the minors for years and if he hasn't caught on with other teams there is no magic in a Red Sox uniform that will guarantee that he will suddenly emerge as a stalwart or even an adequate replacement for Gonzales. Napoli eats up pitches at Fenway Park and to me is a very significant improvement over both Loney and Gomez. We have a good idea of what Napoli can do and ditto for LaRoche if we are forced to go after him (which I think we better be ready to do if the Napoli thing keeps going South), but Gomez is a weak fielder and has average power and has never distinguished himself in the Bigs. We can do better in my opinion and we have to. Thanks, though, for your reply Spitball. If it turns out we have to go with Gomez I hope he is everything you think he is

If we got stuck with Gomez at first it would be total debacle. The guy is a miserable fielder, dumber than a wall and a career minor leaguer who the pitchers would have field day with. And Saltalamacchia with his miserable defense and loudy OBA, not to mention his penchant for strikeouts, wouldn't be much better. Many of you think the Napoli thing will get done and I hope you're all are right but our front office has proven themselves to be a totaly inept bunch the past few years and could screw things up again. Get the Napoli thing done or move on and sign LaRoche. The list of free agents left is shrinking by the hour while Cherington is still with his finger up his keester, apparently unable to move and make a decision.

If we got stuck with Gomez at first it would be total debacle. The guy is a miserable fielder, dumber than a wall and a career minor leaguer who the pitchers would have field day with. And Saltalamacchia with his miserable defense and loudy OBA, not to mention his penchant for strikeouts, wouldn't be much better. Many of you think the Napoli thing will get done and I hope you're all right but our front office has proven themselves to be a totaly inept bunch the past few years and could screw things up again. Get the Napoli thing done or move on and sign LaRoche. The list of free agents left is shrinking by the hour while Cherington is still with his finger up his keester, apparently unable to move and make a decision.

Let's hope the report is true Palodios because we can then turn the page and settle in that it will be Boegarts who will be our future SS and not have to worry about the Red Sox still holding on to the pipe dream that Iglesias will eventually hit in the American League. If OTOH suddenly Drew has a solid season in both the field and at the plate we then and only then might consider moving Bogie to a corner OF spot. This is a trade that should be made not only for this coming season but to solidify our future placement of players onthe diamond.

The problem is we're stocking these "trade chips" BSN, but with the glacial way Cherington moves we may still be overburdened with surplus players in the same position by ST and it will wind up either sending prospects down to the minors "for more damn seasoning", sure condition for more waste of young talent or we trade them in a hurry then for ten cents on the dollar. Cherington should be busy right now working on deals and perhaps some of you out there will tell me that he most likely is However, I think we all know that Ben is a very slow mover and hesitant to pull the trigger on a trade. The guys's risk aversion is just sickening to me.

The problem is we're stocking these "trade chips" BSN, but with the glacial way Cherington moves we may still be overburdened with surplus players in the same position by ST and it will wind up either sending prospects down to the minors "for more damn seasoning", sure condition for more waste of young talent or we trade them in a hurry then for ten cents on the dollar. Cherington should be busy right now working on deals and perhaps some of you out there will tell me that he most likely is However, I think we all know that Ben is a very slow mover and hesitant to pull the trigger on a trade. The guys's risk aversion is just sickening to me.

The problem is we're stocking these "trade chips" BSN, but with the glacial way Cherington moves we may still be overburdened with surplus players in the same position by ST and it will wind up either sending prospects down to the minors "for more damn seasoning", sure condition for more waste of young talent or we trade them in a hurry then for ten cents on the dollar. Cherington should be busy right now working on deals and perhaps some of you out there will tell me that he most likely is However, I think we all know that Ben is a very slow mover and hesitant to pull the trigger on a trade. The guys's risk aversion is just sickening to me.

Pretty new angle to take on this Sox Sport and perhaps you may be on to something considering the injuries Napoli has endured the past few seasons. His body may be breaking down? Maybe. Still that doesn't answer my basic question....IF THERE ARE RED FLAGS IN THIS AGREEMENT WHY AREN'T WE LOOKING ELSEWHERE FOR OUR FIRST BASEMAN? We wait too long and they will all be gone and I am not looking forward to seeing Mauro Gomez patrolling there next season.

Give me the rifle and let me hand Cherington the cigarette and blindfold if he does such a stupid move Jack. You're beginning to sound like a Red Sox fan, certainly thinking like one, but keep in mind bungling has become second nature to the front office in recent years. That's a lot of valuable young prospects to give away for something we may not need. We need a first baseman and a starting pitcher. Can't Cherington understand that?

Whether the MLPA gets involved in the next contract talks concerning these damn physicals it isn't doing us a crapload of good right now. We need a first baseman,, we don't have one, we traded our best 1B prospect for a seasoned slugger only to trade him away. We have nothing over there and I mean with Mauro Gomez, we still have nothing. While we parry and play games with Napoli we risk both LaRoche and Swisher getting inked. Then what? Maybe Morse? Come on guys, the front office is on its way to clusterf***ing another deal as they have become so proficient at the past four seasons. Keep in mind that Napoli is still a free agent and could simply tell the Red Sox to stuff it and move on. I wonder then would there still be people here still defending and lauding our inept front office?

And maybe they're not; most likely if we take their record in these types of negotiations the past four seasons they are in the midst of blowing another signing. As for the right call on Bay, it seems you are one of many who keep saying that. Keep in mind that it was when Jason ran into a wall and suffered a serious concussion that at that new ballpark that his career started to unravel. There is all likelihood that had he stayed in Fenway he would not have suffered such a debiltating injury and might have resumed a career that saw hit hit 36 homers and drive in 119 runs in his last season as a Red Sox. And what did we do after we let Jason Bay walk? We signed that miserable over the hill relic Mike Cameron who stunk before and after we got him, moved Ellsbury to left to supposedly "save his legs" whereupon he suffered a season ending rib injury. I could also remind you MVP that we tried to lowball Matt Holliday who Epstink tried to get to take Bay's place, failed there and then tried to cover his ass by signing John Lackey. Remember those events? Unlike you my friend I have little if any confidence in our front office. In short pretty much of what they have done the past four seasons could be judged as one big CLUSETERf***!!!!!!! I also repeat that if we don't get this Napoli thing straightened out quickly we are going to most likely be holding an empty bag again, and accept from those who see the front office as doing no wrong (not you, I believe), the Red Sox leadership is going to have open season declared on them from fans, the media, the press and Red Sox Nation. It is about time Henry and company get their s*** together after countless screwups the past four seasons.

Yes Jack, all that is true, but Henry and Lucchino are playing their chicken s*** games again and once more they are trying to be clever by half and in the process of blowing the whole God damn thing---just as they did with your Teixeira, Bay, Damon and in talks with Holiday. They are just natural f***-ups and we have to have another plan in place when this blows up. LaRoche would not be as good as Napoli and with Drew on board now we could once again become too left handed, but the alternate is Moron Gomez, a total zit in the field, little power and dumber than a rail. We will need Adam or Nick and fast. This Napoli thing seems to be blowing up and there needs to be an alternate plan...like yesterday.

We have a very inept front office Bell, an honor they have earned with one miserable blunder after another the past four seasons. It wouldn't surprise me one twit if we blow the Napoli caper; he leaves and then we dawdle and fail to sign either Swisher or LaRoche. It would at that point that it becomes open season on Henry, Lucchino, his house pet and the whole pathetic edifice on Yawkey Way. If there is a problem between Napoli and Cherington, Bennie the Boob had better start running for his life to the telephone and get in touch with LaRoche or Swisher like lickity split. This could end very ugly.

You say the Red Sox could have played Ciriaco at SS for peanuts instead of signing Drew and I could see that even though the guy is not the slickest fielder in the shed, but I cannot fathom your seemingly love affair with Iglesias. Were we both watching the same guy last September? He was absolutely pathetic at the plate and he most likely convinced the brass that he would have a lot of trouble hitting ML pitching. We're not even talking about te 200 Menzoza line here; Igy hit a deplorable 118 for the team. He looked even worse at the dish than his average. Now could he develop into a better hitter? Possibly, but he didn't hit very much in the minors either, and whether y ou're conceding the season or not, a lot of us want the team to win as many games as possible as we rebuild towards respectability. To let Iglesias bat no matter what and never pinch hit for such a weak hitter is just throwing games away, some of which we could win wit a key hit. I remember very painfully back in 2008 when Jason Varitek just collapsed offensively for us at the plate and Francona stubbornly refused to ever pinch hit for him. It seemed that so many times that summer with the game on the line Varitek came to the plate and failed miserably time after time after time. I counted about nine or ten games in which that happened. It cost us the AL East Title that year and home field for the playoffs. One player isn't worth that, especially such a weak hitter as Iggy.

Not from me there isn't. Let's be frank---Ethier can't hit lefthanders worth a damn. He is pathetic against them and it gets worse as the season wears on. He would be exposed stark naked in the southpaw rich AL East, and I'm told we're not into picking up and signing players to big contracts and the four year $85 million contract doesn't sound like chicken feed to me. Now Ethier's best friend, Dustin Pedroia, will be shouting for the Red Sox to make the trade but let me warn all of you out there now---ETHIER SHITS GREEN WHENEVER HE SEES A LEFTY. Stay away from this unless you are willing to platoon him.

I don't know what the Red Sox have in mind for Iglesias my friend, but if you'll permit me a little sarcasm, I don't think the Red Sox what to do with him or what to do PERIOD!!!! To me it is astounding just how inept our front office has gotten the past four years. I do believe they think Boegarts can take over in 2014 and be a decent enough defensive shortstop with a lethal bat to go with it. It would take care of the left side of our infield for a decade. Those who want to trade Iggy must know that he alone will not bring us much in exchange; he would have to be part of a package due to his woefully weak bat. Consider this too. You have Iglesias at SS but late in the game you have a tie and two on and two out and he is at bat. You would most likely have to pinch hit for him or see the rally die. Then what? You put an inferior fielder in to take is place. Better to have a SS who can both field and swing a bat---and I hear Bogie can do that very well.:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

Any scout will tell you that it is hard to project whether a good minor league hitter will hit in the Big Leagues where pitchers put it where they want and can throw a good off speed pitch in a 2-0 and 3-1 count instead of getting a fat fastball in those counts down on the farm. I preface what I want to say by that because this is just MY opinion as one who coached and did some scouting for friends in my salad days. To me Iglesias doesn't look the type to ever develop into a hitter. He has a slow bat, is tentative on pitches, has poor plate control and gets late jumps on pitches. He could develop but from watching him on the tube he seems like a long drawn out project. Drew gives us a year's grace with someone who can hit from the left side since we now seem too righthanded and can pave the way for Boegarts to take over in 2014 hopefully. I think the Red Sox came to that same conclusion---that Jose simply did not have the ability to consistently hit a baseball.

If anyone thinks Iglesias is going to hit anywhere above the Mendoza line, I have some great beachfront property for sale in Kansas. Ain't gonna happen, and comparing him to what Pedroia did in his third of a season back in '06 is one giant canard. First of all Pedey came to the Red Sox after hitting 305 at Pawtucket after a slow start due to rehab from injury and he had hit in the minors consistently. Iggy has shown nothing of the sort anywhere to speak of. Besides, I don't like the idea of Salty back at catcher. Good God, do the powers-that-be need to be hit with hammer blows to the noggin to get it through their heads that the pitchers' ERA jumps over a run whenever he catches; plus he can't throw worth s***, has a piss poor arm and except for hitting some homers has a miserable OBA. Give Lavarnway a full shot and this time let him bat plenty in ST to groove his swing. How about Steven Drew at short for a season or two? At least we'd have a bat of some kind there.

If anyone thinks Iglesias is going to hit anywhere above the Mendoza line, I have some great beachfront property for sale in Kansas. Ain't gonna happen, and comparing him to what Pedroia did in his third of a season back in '06 is one giant canard. First of all Pedey came to the Red Sox after hitting 305 at Pawtucket after a slow start due to rehab from injury and he had hit in the minors consistently. Iggy has shown nothing of the sort anywhere to speak of. Besides, I don't like the idea of Salty back at catcher. Good God, do the powers-that-be need to be hit with hammer blows to the noggin to get it through their heads that the pitchers' ERA jumps over a run whenever he catches; plus he can't throw worth s***, has a piss poor arm and except for hitting some homers has a miserable OBA. Give Lavarnway a full shot and this time let him bat plenty in ST to groove his swing. How about Steven Drew at short for a season or two? At least we'd have a bat of some kind there.

RS3, I think this is one of the best posts I've read in the last week. Simplicity to the core, full of sound insight and a warning to the front office to not let this sit u ation get out of hand. You are so right. If Cherington dawdles on the Napoli problem he will look up an see Swisher and LaRoche fall off the board---and we cannot afford to have a dork like Gomez playing first base for us next year. Get the Napoli problem solved or walk away and get one of those other two signed pronto!!!! I hope it works out with Mike but I think time is of the essence. We can't wait much longer for this to adjuticate itself.