a700hitter

I'd rate Papelbon over Valverde for the reasons you cited, but just because I would put Papelbon ahead of Valverde doesn't mean that Valverde should get dropped to second tier. Despite the extra basrunners, Valverde has been very consistent at getting the job done over an extended period. It may be ugly at times, but he does get the job done.

I think you are straining to help yourself feel better about the fact that we have no closer. You may be able to make yourself feel better in this manner, but it doesn't work for me. Papelbon, with the exception of 2010, was very reliable. The same goes for Valverde. He too had one bad year but he has been very reliable every other season. These guys save 30+ games each year and they lock down around 90% of their save opportunities every year. That's not volatile, and although Valverde is an a--hole but he is not second tier. Brad Lidge, Houston Street and even KRod are volatile. Mo, Papelbon and Valverde are reliable and consistent and not volatile It's a small class of reliable consistent closers. We don't have one at the moment, and I don't feel good about it.

Starting clearly is his preference, but that doesn't preclude his success in another role. Goose Gossage came up as a starter and preferred starting too. Things ended up pretty good for him. The same can be said for Eck.

But he is on record about his preference to start. That is not in question.

I don't think this issue is whether Bard will pitch well in a role he doesn't want. I think the Sox made a commitment to let him win a starting job. He prepared himself and won the job, not by overwhelming acclamation, but he did enough to win the spot. The words and commitments of the FO should mean something. I think they feel committed to letting him prove himself. If he craps all over himself for 3 or 4 starts, they might feel that he blew his chance and put him back in the pen.

I like the Uehara idea, but i don't know what it would take to get him, and what about the budgetary restraints.

Agreed. As we proved once again today, even frequent disagreement on issues, philosophies etc. doesn't preclude agreement on the next issue. I don't mind the disagreements, because with rare exception, every point of view has at least some merit. There are times when I can't find merit to an argument. I am still having trouble with Doji's position that we started the season 8 starters deep. I can't get close on that one, but that doesn't mean that Doji doesn't make a lot of good points on other issues. Most of us make a lot of good points. Doji, please don't take offense. This is just a recent example of a very rare circumstance.

I think a mid-level arm should do the job for now to help the pen settle in. In another month, if that doesn't work out, I'll post another poll.

I do like Uehara. He has closer potential too.

I am pretty sure that the Sox FO is actively and feverishly considering all of their options. If they are not, they aren't doing their job. They may way wait a week or two to make a move, so they will have a better idea of what they have in their current bullpen, but they are certainly discussing the items. We're going to be discussing the bullpen like crazy here, so I thought it would be interesting to gauge the thinking of people with a poll.

IMO, they need to add an arm. I think it is a tremendous risk to wait for Dice K and/or Hill to return. They may not be very effective initially. Relying on Cook and Ohlendorf, doesn't solve the bullpen issue unless you send Bard to the pen, and it seems that he doesn't want to close or the FO doesn't want him closing or both.

I'm not resistant to it. I don't think numbers tell all of the story, because the indefinable stuff doesn't translate to the numbers much of the time. It's not a bias thing. I think it is just a matter of seeing it with eyes that I have seen a lot of baseball. I'm not a Yankee fan. I hate the pinstripes, and always have. I didn't see Mantle in his prime, but when you went to Yankee Stadium and watched him play, he had a special quality. The ball exploded off his bat. His numbers have been eclipsed and even in his day, his numbers were not the best. No, it is not a bias thing. I think the numbers merely support what my eyes have already told me. If it was a bias thing, I would think all the Sox were great and the numbers would expose my bias. There aren't a lot of stats on Bailey to make a very strong case. He's pitched more than 50 innings just once in his 3 seasons. Let's see how his numbers look when he gets 6 or 7 full seasons under his belt. I think those numbers will bear out my impression of him.

When a guy has produced for many years leaves, the next guy has to prove himself. Bailey has some nice numbers. Nothing to make me think he belongs on any list with Papelbon. That's my opinion. If he had stepped up and earned that respect in Boston, it would have been great for us. Now, we will not get the chance. Maybe next year he will get his chance. I'm just not ready to put him on par with Papelbon until he proves deserving in Boston. If he does, he'll be in some elite company. It would be great if it happens, but although very good, I just don't see a lot special about Bailey. Hopefully, I am wrong.

I realize that you are being snide, but before the internet and fangraphs and so forth, a scout that went to look at Bobby Doerr noticed a gangly kid that could hit the everloving stuffing out of a baseball. He didn't need to see him a second time and recommended that the Sox sign him. He only saw few ABs from the skinny kid. Ted Williams filled in the rest of the gaps over the next 22 years. The point of my story is that some players are special when you see them. You can't get that from numbers or GameCast and maybe not even from TV. Now you may not like my story and you will surely denigrate the story and my ability to spot special talent. Go right ahead. It's just my opinion. The funny thing is that all the numbers that you look at don't prove that he (Papelbon) isn't a special talent. In fact, to a great extent they support it. It's like the great Vin Scully said about stats: they should be used the same way that a drunk uses a lampost-- for support, not illumination. I paraphrase.

I saw that kind of fastball dominance on several occasions from Papelbon. Never saw it from Bailey. If I ever see it, and I don't think I will, he'll go up in my estimation. So, you don't like the story. Am I surprised? Oh well.

I'm not saying anything to the contrary. As I said earlier, Bailey could have really been a big asset to this team. Now, he is a non-factor, and frankly our pitching staff has no more room for additional injuries or under-performance. We don't have the depth to withstand further inury. We didn't have the depth last year, and we didn't add much to last year's staff. We added Melancon and Bailey, and now Bailey is hurt.

You criticize people for being haters, and now you criticize them for showing the love. My, you are hard to please.

My friend, iortiz has used the expression when comparing Mo and Papelbon. He said that they drive on the same highway. I like that expression. Bailey hasn't done anything to prove that he is on that highway. He just has not.

Let's not forget that bailey was pitching in a home ballpark that could fit a good sized parking lot in foul territory and that the ball carries horribly in Oakland at night too. It's a much different situation.