a700hitter

He knows more about what it takes to play the game and be successful than the guys writing projections for blogs.

He's been here all season long.

As I hit submit, Ortiz kills the pig!

Let's kill this pig this inning!

They have to be robotic to be successful as players, and when they retire they are freed to let it all hang out. I enjoyed all of their speeches.

Earlier baseball is one of the reasons that I would like to live on the left coast. Where are you living in Settle and how do you like it? Tell us about it. There is little interesting about the red Sox these days.

Thank goodness I wasn't drinking anything or the laptop would have shorted out. LOL!!

We have seen that Ben can dismantle a team in 2012 and last year getting rid of our entire starting pitching staff. But can he re-mantle? LOL!!!

Gary Thorne is Master of Ceremonies

Pedro gave a special mention to Dan Duquette. Duke did pull off two of the greatest trades in Boston Red Sox history. Carl Pavano and Tony Armas Jr for Pedro. The other one being Heathcliffe Slocumb for Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe.

They have Kipnis. Why would they need Pedroia?

He's not going to bring back a big time pitcher.

They would cost a haul. Say goodbye to Betts and Swihart for either of them. I can't see why Cleveland would have any interest in trading of them at this juncture. It ain't going to happen, and I don't think we have the pieces to get it done.

When Ralph Kiner asked Branch Rickey, Rickey told him "[w]e finished last with you. I am pretty sure that we can finish without you." The same sentiment applies to Pedroia.

Nice thread. The only mistake you made is that he was not the greatest pitcher you ever saw. He is the greatest pitcher that anyone ever saw.

But I am not sure Ben knows yet. LOL!!

"a 'gritty' white guy"? I thought he was Hispanic.

Based on what... his superior girth that would make him a bigger target for the other infielders? The more guys you play out of position the more you weaken your defense. Let one guy learn a new position, not 2.

I like ER but he is not an ace yet. It is nice to watch him develop, but we need a horse to hand the ball, and he is not that yet.

"Young cost controlled ace" -- More double speak from the FO. Every team wants the young ace arm, because it should have more miles left on it. The result of those pitchers being so desirable is that the cost will be enormous. So much for cost control. The only way to get a young ace that is "cost-controlled" is someone under contract with another team or with too few years for Arbitration or Free Agency. Those guys are going to cost a fortune in prospects. They are the hottest properties around. Teams are not going to give them away. The "young cost controlled ace" is like looking for the holy grail. Every other team is looking for him too. The last time we landed one for a good price was Pedro. He has been retired for 5 years after a nice long career and is going into the Hall today. It doesn't happen very often at all.

That addresses a big need for their team.

MVP, you need to grab today's game thread. You have the best record and this team owes it to Pedro not to play like a bag of s*** on his big day.

I have no confidence that Ben would make the right choice with the #1.

And there is zero evidence, not even any innuendo from good sources that Porcello's approach has been tinkered with by the Red Sox. His suck is all on him. Blaming the Red Sox is a pure fabrication. Maybe he been trying to step up his game to earn his money and it just hasn't worked out. He might start playing within himself and go back to being a reliable #4 pitcher which is what he is. Even if he rights himself to his career norms, he is still overpaid.

Trading Pedroia would be a bombshell. Although on the downside of his career, he is still an excellent player. The return would have to be enormous as he is signed through 2012 at less than three quarters of the annual rate being paid to POS Porcello. The return would have to include major league talent and a blue chip prospect plus. If our farm system is as well stocked as some people think, do we really need to trade part of the core of the team (one of our few true stars) to add to our farm? If this team's farm system is barren, we may have no choice but to move Pedroia to restock the farm. I am not sure that it would be a move that would have positive consequences for the Red Sox, not even several years down the road as I have zero confidence in Ben's judgment. If they trade Pedroia, I think that will be a strong indicator that the team is going nowhere for 2 to 3 more years. That would make 6 or 7 years of almost continuous suck. For a team with the resources of the Red Sox, that would be astounding. I really can't see this happening, especially if the Red Sox pick up Buch's option for almost what Pedroia makes.