jacksonianmarch

Lackey does not look sharp

the choice is between Chip Caray and Buck/McCarver. Kinda like a noose and death by drowning

Damon breaks his bat and gets a good hit. NICE!!!

If you got nuts on yo chin, do you gots chinnuts?

Yes, he is. Because JD Drew usually needs a few days off to a week off when he gets dinged up. And Baldelli isnt equipped to play on consecutive days

good first inning from carsten charles

One down, 26 to go

A healthy Baldelli gets a starting nod on some teams.

so did Kennedy

And I am pretty happy with Kennedy's MiLB performance to this point. Thing is, stuff wise, neither of them blow you away because they lack the power heater.

Lester was coming off cancer and was only throwing 90mph. What's Tazawa's excuse?

Nope, it could be the fact that in 128 games this yr, he hit 17 homers and had a .785OPS while also stealing 9 bases and playing solid D. But if you want to think it is just because of his ties to Boston, then go ahead.

Murphy wouldnt be wanted or needed for the sox? You mean the perfect 4th OFer for a team with a fragile RFer?

Tazawa is going to be a back of the rotation pitcher in the AL. He doesnt throw hard enough consistently enough to churn through these tough AL lineups. And he doesnt have the location or the depth of secondary pitches to "outpitch" the deep AL lineups. He reminds me a lot of Ian Kennedy.

"I will trade God for Papelbon!!" Steve Phillips (if he was still GM of the Mets)

Here's the deal. Bay will sign before Christmas. Holliday is going to sign mid January, remember he's a Boras client. So, if the sox go balls out for Holliday, then they risk losing Bay and then losing Holliday to NY. If Bay goes to the Mets and then the Yankees put up another last minute effort to nab Holliday, the sox would end up having to go after an old retread for LF. Remember, LF for the sox is a critical spot since it was the home of their best offensive player for 2009. For the yankees, LF was a role spot around the crux of the team at SS, 1B and 3B

He's gonna be brought back on a minor league deal IMO. His shoulder just got reconstructed. He isnt gonna get a guaranteed deal from anyone. Once the shoulder gets opened, nothing is guaranteed.

Papelbon had an awesome yr and was an all star in my mind. He was a top 3 closer in the game, no doubt.

I agree, he was damn good. But saying someone is even better when they do something that they arent doing then isnt it a moot point?

? Not sure what you mean. You say Papelbon would be great if he used the split. He isnt using the split.

both of them belong in the DH spot. Damon is great in Yankee stadium and would be a good guy to keep around because he could be had cheaply solely because his market will be significantly stunted due to his increased production in one park.

You dont need "quality". You need someone you can count on for 6 innings a start to be average. You have Beckett and Lester who will headline the rotation. You will have DiceK who, when healthy, can be a #2 starter in the league, but has some serious injury concerns. You have Buchholz, who is a young pitcher who will be inconsistent and at times dominant. You need a 3rd guy in the rotation whom you can count on for being there all the time and not completely sucking. You need a guy like Brad Penny prior to his run of s*** starting in June. Someone who's ERA sits in the high 4s while averaging 6IP per start. Maybe a Jon Garland does the trick? Now, if you dont add a guy like that, a reliable, average but not spectacular pitcher and go with another question mark, then you will suffer

There is absolutely no doubt that the yankees will have an impact on the LF market. No doubt. There is a chance they put pressure on the sox and increase the chunk of change while hanging onto Damon and Matsui. There is a small chance they nab Bay based on his "yankee-killing" capabilities. But I do think they make a good run at Holliday. He's young, he's a good defender and he's fast. All things that make him look like an OFer long term. While with Bay, he looks like he should be a DH now, let alone how he will look in 4-5 yrs. I do think the yankees end up with Holliday if I was a betting man. Doesnt mean that is what is best for them considering the money coming off the books. But I do think they end up with him. Hell, Wang at 6mil, Matsui at 13 mil, Pettitte at 12 mil (with incentives), Nady at 6mil, and Damon at 14 mil are all due to come off the books. Thats $51 million. If you consider that we could get Holliday around 17mil and potentially resigning Pettitte for 10 mil (with incentives) and Damon or Matsui for 8-10 mil, we could decrease our payroll by around 15mil while helping to shape the team for the future.

He isnt throwing the split, so therefore, you cannot say he's better with that caveat. Thats like saying Rivera is better when he throws a 4 seamer.

If the sox expect a front 5 of Beckett-Lester-DiceK-Buchholz-Wake to start the season and be there full time, I will absolutely LOVE it. The sox need one more quality SP with Buchholz' streakiness and with Wake and DiceK's injury history