a700hitter

Nava is just not MLB caliber. If we see him again on the Red Sox MLB 25 man roster, it will be some evidence that the FO is not making a big effort to get the 2012 team to the post season.

Ballplayers today are such pampered princesses. It's sickening.

:lol: I am sure that your wife is being sincere, but many woman lie.

We're reading a lot of optimistic reports about Dice 's progress. He's on the second leg of his rehab. Many are projecting that he will be back in the rotation by June 1st. I am on record as not being that optimistic about his return date. Our resident TalkSox physician has opined that it takes more than 12 months for a starter to return to effectiveness. Let's try to guess the date of Dice K's first start. Whoever comes closest to the date of his first Red Sox start will win $20. The prize will get bumped up to $50 if you guess the exact date. The selected dates will be posted here for everyone to see. The date of his return to the roster is not what we are guessing. Also, an appearance in relief doesn't count. We are guessing the date of his first start. There are only a few conditions: 1. Eligibility is limited to members with at least 100 posts 2. Only 1 entry per member 3. You can't duplicate someone else's entry 4. You can't edit your post that includes your entry. That will invalidate your entry. 5. Your entry must be submitted by midnight EDT this Friday (4/27). Good luck! Selected Dates: May 15 Palodios May 18th Divinity May 23 MannyHOF24 May 25 ORS May 28 WhiskeyBreath June 1 VA Sox Fan June 6 Laser Show June 25 redsoxrules July 6. Yeszir July15. Iortiz Aug 7 J_E Aug 8 a700Hitter

It's because the adequate and tall Salty doesn't give pitchers a low enough target- that's my theory. Mauer is a very big catcher, and early in his career my recollection is that some pitchers expressed concern about pitching to such a big catcher. Some felt that umps couldn't get a good look at the low pitch. Mauer, when healthy, compensates for his size by getting very low. IMO, Salty is giving too high a target and/or he is not giving the ump a good look at the low pitch.

The only comment that I would make to your signature, and I am not trying to be a pest, but Papelbon is not just a "real closer", he is a great closer.

You might have to update this 40 times. If the Sox BP totals as many saves as Papelbon, I would be shocked.

You need to update your sig again. Papelbon has 6 saves.

They have been a first class organization all along, so I think they will do what needs to be done. I don't think they will want to look at empty seats in July. As for your question about the bridge to Bard, that would have to be Aceves and Morales until Hill comes back.

This killed me. Very funny!

Ortiz is just such a great hitter. Not only can he crush the ball and hit tape measure shots, but he can take the ball the other way right down the line. Pretty soon they will have to go away from the shift. They are playing into his hands now. He has mastered taking pitches to left or down 3rd base. Marlon Byrd was always a very streaky player in my recollection. He's not too old, so he probably has something left in the tank. He can be a real spark-plug. We still need some bullpen arms.

He was a trainwreck in ST. They got him out of there very early so as not to wreck his psyche.

Thomas for another month or 2 would not be a good thing. Miller on the MLB roster is not a good idea. He is last year's failed experiment. We have enough other experiments in the works this year. There's no room for last year's failure.

I was just talking to a Mets season ticket holder about Bay. He called him an enigma. He hasn't had wear and tear type injuries. First, it was the concussion and now the ribs. Before and in between the injuries, he hasn't had 1 hot streak. If he hits a couple of HRs there is absolutely no carry over. He told me that he hasn't lost bat speed. He is rarely late on a pitch. He just seems to swing through a lot of pitches.

They should have known that they did nt adequately replace Papelbon and Bard with Melancon and Bailey. Even if you call Bailey and Papelbon a wash, which is a tremendous overstatement, Melancon as a 8th inning guy was a pipe dream. People who believed that he could replace Bard based on 1/2 a year of stats with Houston obviously never saw the guy pitch. He has nothing. He may not even be as good as Albers. The poorly constructed bullpen is 100% on the FO. The injury to Bailey didnot cause the entire pen to suck. Also, if you want to talk about the misfortunes suffered by the FO due to Bailey's injury, you need to be fair and acknowledge that Doubront has surpassed their expectations in claiming a rotation spot. If he hadn't been such a surprise, Aeves would be the 5th starter and the pen would be even worse if that were possible.

You are ignoring the fundamental flaw in this team by attributing the current state of affairs to under performance. Yes, everyone on the staff is under performing. Buchh and Lest will come around, and even though the bullpen will not continue to pitch to an 18 ERA, the difference between the bullpen and the rest of the team is that we have no talent in the pen-- no talent, no experience and no track record of accomplishment. That adds up to a big gaping hole. Youk will hit, AGon will hit, Lester and Buch will pitch well. They all have talent. There is no talent in the pen. The late innings are a parade of pigs to the mound. If one of our relievers gets 3 outs without giving up a run, we should thank God, because they are not good major league pitchers. They stink. The problem needs to be addressed with new players. The bullpen has no chance of righting itself unless Bard goes into the closer role. That much is clear.

or we can trade him.

His history is that he has been much better as a part time oFer. As a full time OFer he has been prone to long slumps. He's very good against lefties. That's has been his highest and best use up to this point of his career.

He's going back to the rotation by all accounts.

He's much better as a platoon player than as a full time player.

The late innings will churn our stomachs all season long and we will experience more devastating losses than we have been used to in past seasons.