a700hitter

Prices are up this year. It's very difficult to find discounts.

I'll be down there from the 17th - 24th. I will try to stop by when I arrive.

Oh Boy!

Pitchers and catchers report on Sunday. Wakefield and Varitek have still not retired. I wonder if they will report on Sunday. Reports were that Wakefield would make his decision last week. Does no announcement signifies that he will come to camp. There are no reports that either of them have rejected the minor league deals.

Who would you pitch to?

Salty is adequate at best. His defense stinks. Too many throws into CF. His release is almost as slo as the 40 year old Varitek's release. He can't catch the ball. Wakefield is not to blame for all of his passed balls. He doesn't block balls well. He's no Varitek catching the ball and blocking the plate. Varitek's weakness was his throwing release which became glaring over the last few seasons. Other than that, he did everything very well behind the plate, and I never saw a catcher block the plate better. His left leg was like a concrete pillar. Salty doesn't do anything well behind the plate, and the jury is still out on how he handles the pitching staff. As for his hitting, he hits like a catcher. It's a weak pool. My fear this season (to connect up with the topic of this thread) is that he will not improve offensively in 2012 and Ortiz will not see any pitches because of it. With the bottom of the Sox order, someone needs to step up or pitchers will pitch around Ortiz from day 1. They'd have to be idiots to let Ortiz hurt them with Salty, Aviles, Sweeney, and Ross hitting behind him.

I don't think they are expecting Bard to be Roger Clemens, but I do think that they expect some consistency and and innings. Sure that will come with bumps. I think we have to acknowledge that he might have more than a few bumps. There is the risk that it could be a train wreck for him like it was in the minors. I don't think it will be a train wreck, but we just can't be certain, because there is no track record for success as a starter. If he were to implode they would have to remove him from the rotation and put him back in the pen. I think the Sox are putting him in the rotation for 2 reasons. First, there are 2 openings due to injury, but equally as important is that Bard has requested the opportunity to start. I don't know how much they believe in his prospect for success.

I guess this will eliminate their consideration for Manny.

Is this the same as traction?

Haven't the A's signed a bunch of OFers in the off season?

This off season continues to baffle me. If Oswalt is damaged goods and that's why no one wants him, then I don't want him either. If he is just going to be an expensive dumpster dive acquisition, that is not what we need. I wouldn't want him at any price. What this team needed going into the off season was a consistent starter who could take the ball 30+ times. If Oswalt is not the guy, why didn't they get someone else? They passed or missed out on Kuroda, Jackson, and even Saunders. What about a trade for a starter? Getting a starter should have been their primary goal. If it was, they have not executed their plan. If it wasn't their plan, I have to question their strategy. Bard could pitch like Roger Clemens or fail miserably or anything in between. We just don't know. It's a gamble. We will also be rolling the dice every 5th day on an assortment of garbage and hoping that 1 of them gets some traction. I don't get how this can be thought to be a sound plan. What happens if there are any injuries? If we weren't going to siign or acquire a starter, why dump Scutaro? Did they do that. to pay for Ortiz's raise? We keep hearing and reading that they are happy with their rotation, but how could that be? It seems like a big roll of the dice for a $170 million team. Then everyday their are reports about their interest in one starter or another. I don't know what to believe. The whole scenario makes very little sense.

Whoever signs him needs to give him a thorough physical.