a700hitter

I find back patting to be less offensive than poking. And you are right that things are not black and white. If people responded to the posts instead of the posters, they would be surprised about the amount of overlap and agreement. After all, we are insanely well-informed fans about the Red Sox and we know the game pretty well. Most of the time, we can agree on who is good and who is bad on the field. The disagreements oddly enough come with regard to the FO and there capabilities and motives. I have never been a guy who roots for or likes management. Let me be clear. I don't dislike them either. I am very open about that. I don't believe in cutting them slack. I expect them to do their job and get a good product on the field. I don't want to hear excuses from them. I don't want to hear excuses about building for the future, not sacrificing the future, etc., because 3 to 5 years ago 2012 was the future and we were hearing the same s***. I'll listen about the future and be excited, but it cuts them no slack from me with regard to today's team-- never. Many people disagree with that philosophy and that's okay.

Welcome to TalkSox.

I like to stop in Jerry Remy's on Boylston for a pregame beer. Beerworks is good too, or any of the places around the ballpark. Welcome to TalkSox.

Yes, it is, and everyone is entitled to their opinion without being ridiculed. Crazy opinions are welcome. Nasty bastards who insult people for their opinions are not.

In order to go on a sustained run, the bullpen will have to be consistently good, and despite their recent good performance, I am not convinced that the pen has the arms to be consistently good. I don't have much trust in any of them to pitch the 8th inning. I am still not sold on Miller and Albers is scary. In the end, the pen is the weakest part of this team, but the easiest to fix. With a good pen, this team could get back into the race as long as the big 3 stabilize.

Great game by Lester!!!

I agree. When they are cruising send them out for another inning.

I could see the Blanton move. That would make sense for both teams. Blanton is a serviceable starter most of the time. He's also Daniel Nava's favorite pitcher.

I'm happy for the kid. Another nice memory for him to look back on as he is pumping gas in a couple of years.

I never said he was a slug. He obviously tries very hard. He's a bush leaguer. I should keep bashing him. It's working well. The kid is making the most of his shot. It would be funny if he sticks for the season, but Middlebrooks gets sent down.

I'm not seeing that. Texas infield is stacked.

Desmond for Salty would be a steal. I don't think they'll go for it.

I don't remember anyone complaining about the offense, just the pitching.

Arguably, Bard has been the team's best starter to this point. I don't know what kind of bullpen guy we could get from the Nats. They have injuries in their pen. Their closer Storen is out. The Nats have really been hit by the injury bug. In addition to Ramos and Storen, Werth and Morse are also on the DL. Unlike the Red Sox, they are not wallowing in last place and they are looking to make moves to address their needs. Proof that injuries are not an excuse.

I am hoping that Bobby V and his coaches are giving him a crash course in playing the OF so we can continue to see him in the lineup when Youks comes back. They can move hi$m back to 3rd if Youk continues to crap out or get injured.

Have we met? I don't know whether people should thank me, but I am trying to prepare people for the disappointment when Youks is back. SFF is very enthusiastic about this, and he is right about the issue. However, we are all about to find out that the FO isnot packed full of smart people. Money will not be an excuse this time. They have to pay Youk one way or another, unless some team takes part of his salary. The FO isn't very smart and they are gutless too-- about the same as most sports franchises.

Yes, Middlebrooks has been red hot in his 10 games, but it is only 10 games. This blurb puts it in perspective: Davis had a nice career, but these guys were not super stars. It's 10 games. It means nothing.

It's only 10 games and Cherries doesn't have the guts to bench or release an $11 million player. It's as simple as that. You guys are going to go crazy when this goes down. Expect nothing from the FO, and you will never be disappointed. Look, it was as clear as the nose on your face that this team need to acquire some pitching in the off season. They didn't. People made excuses about how our pitching would be fine because we no longer had Lackey and Wakefield. Up to this juncture, our team pitching is worse than last year. I'm not interested in any excuses. The FO very often doesn't do what is clearly needed, so don't expect them to do the right thing in the WMB situation.