jacksonianmarch

The Halladay move would be important, but the rest would be change for the sake of change. I think the sox could be better served by going after a reliable, but not top flight starter like Washburn and then adding a bat like Martinez. Halladay doesnt fix their lineup alone and Martinez doesnt fix their rotation alone. Now, one could argue that the sox dont need offensive help, that the guys will start hitting eventually. Well, I agree that they wont stay this bad, there are some alarming things happening to make this month incredibly bad. First of all, here are some stats month to month April- 126 runs (5th in MLB ), 5.7 R/G, .275BA (7th), .364OBP (4th), .463SLG (5th), .827OPS (3rd) May- 141 runs (11th in MLB ), 4.8 R/G, .273BA (11th), .350OBP (6th), .452SLG (7th), .802OPS (6th) June- 138 runs (5th in MLB ), 5.3 R/G, .260BA (12th), .348OBP (4th), .433SLG (8th), .781OPS (6th) July- 107 runs (16th in MLB ), 4.6 R/G, .241BA (25th), .323OBP (18th), .405SLG (20th), .729OPS(19th) Anyone noticing a trend here? While the sox have seen their runs yo-yo between April-July, the BA, OBP, SLG, and OPS have dropped in every month. This has a lot to do with the type of players the sox have and the ridiculous offensive start that some guys had, namely Youk and Bay. To be honest with you, the way the sox have played this yr, there arent too many guys I am waiting on to just absolutely break out and be awesome. I do expect some guys to improve over their recent stretch (Bay). I expect some guys to continue their level of play (Youk and Pedroia). And I expect some guys to slow down as the season continues (namely Tek and Lowell). Regardless, I think the trend speaks loudly for the acquisition of a bat.

He would have had to allow less than 1 run in his 6 innings of work to match Kazmir. You dont get it, do you.

Joba found something in Nebraska. Maybe his inner child. Maybe his mojo. I dunno. But something centered him, and since that trip, he's been unhittable. Maybe the yankees should schedule quarterly trips to Nebraska for this guy

CASH IT IN, JASON HIRSCH IS ACE!!11!!

A splitter is one of the most damaging pitches in the game on the elbow.

Jason Hirsch from the Rockies per Fat Abe. He's been optioned to AAA. I liked Hirsch before he got hurt and then completely sucked. He's insurance, but one of those policies you never hope to cash in.

Well, JP is saying that they arent gonna deal him and will make an attempt to be competitive in 2010. He has somewhat of a point saying that his team is incredibly unhealthy. But Marcum and McGowan have no guarantee that they'll come back strong. I have a feeling JP makes a deal at the deadline next yr if he's serious. Cause even if McGowan and Marcum come back lights out, they arent close to us.

I do find it funny that people say the yankees would be mortgaging their future. Lets put it this way, the yankees can match the sox step for step from A+ and below. Any deal for Hall,aday would decimate either team's stock of close to MLB ready talent. Something that would be regenerated in 1-2 seasons based on the capacity to pay overslot and to sign INTL FAs.

ummm, yeah. Guys, I think DiceK is the next one out. Called it here

Olney is reporting that Ricciardi countered with Lester, Buchholz and a prospect. haha. I wouldnt deal Lester for Halladay straight up, let alone with Buchholz and another prospect

but then he'd have the same chance vs you guys

The Guardians got an absolute haul from this deal

Assuming Aceves is ok (he said his shoulder is a bit sore), then I dont think we need to make any improvement in the pen. Hughes, Coke, Aceves and Mo have been a really strong pen. And having Robertson come in during mop-up/behind duty has been nice too. I dont think a pen addition is needed, obviously if someone falls into our lap, we take it. Where we need help is in the rotation. AJ, CC, and Pettitte have been durable and solid as a top 3. Joba has been inconsistent and will be coming up on an inning limit and Mitre is a wild card. We could use another starter

Dumbass as usual. Kazmir was unhittable tonight. That is what I am saying. In order to beat Kaz, he would have had to be perfect.

I think it was pretty obvious that Wang was down for the yr when he couldnt throw. This might kick up our interest more in Washburn than in Halladay. I will tell you right now, the Jays were pretty adamant about getting Happ, Drabek, and the Phils top OF prospect. The fact that the Phils offered Drabek, their top OF prospect and Donald and the Jays rejected it is pretty telling. The package we or the sox would need to offer to the Jays is a lot more than either team would swallow. We're talking Hughes, Coke, Montero, and Jackson for us. We're talking Buchholz, Bowden, Bard, and Anderson for you guys. I highly doubt the Doc is in this thing for either of us. Cause at that price, it just isnt worth it. The wild card is Cleveland. Cleveland has always been great at scouting other teams and typically asks for a MLB ready prospect, a close to MLB ready prospect and a guy further down the line. They did that with Montreal and hit on all three (well, Phillips found his way in Cincy). I think something can be done with Lee, but I have a feeling it will hurt a bit less off the bat, but potentially a bit more in the future. Especially since I think they scout much better than Toronto

CC had rough night. They hit him well. Oh well, its okay for him to get it out of his system on a night we get dominated. We werent winning tonight unless CC was perfect.

Guys, I dont want to sound like the yankee fan here (or do I), but VMart and Lee would fill every hole imaginable like a Peter North/Jenna Jameson sex toy party. VMart offers you a part time switch hitting catcher, capable of spelling the suck that has been Jason Varitek and sparing you from the suck that has been George Kottaras. Varitek's hot start has kept his detractors at bay. But the OPS has fallen every month this season from April's .881 to .824, .750, .691. And to make the suck worse, since the ASB, he's 4 for 25 with a .462OPS. Couple that with Kottaras' .631OPS and you have a positional sinkhole. And it isnt like you're losing defense. Varitek is setting a new low for futility in throwing out baserunners, now at a rate of 15%. In his defense, VMart's isnt good either, but his history would suggest that he should come up to his 30% baseline in limited duty. Regardless, you arent losing much by sitting Vtek a bit more. Then there is the possibility of using VMart at 1b. I know there are complicating factors with LaRoche, Youkilis and Lowell. But lets be realistic. Lowell sucks in the second half with regularity AND is going to have trouble staying healthy. He will need to be cut back to part time duty. Youkilis would then split time between 1B and 3B. LaRoche is a fine fill in at that juncture, but he also cannot hit lefties, something VMart can. Also, VMart can DH against lefties as well to get Ortiz out of there. The funny thing is, Ortiz is hitting just about where he hits vs lefties this yr, in the low .700 range in OPS. The problem is, he's doing the same against righties now. Regardless, it would add some oomph to multiple positions and give the sox an option of having a versatile lineup. Then with Cliff Lee, well, its a no brainer. Lee was a Cy Young last yr. He sucked in 2007, but his career before that was really, really solid. Something came apart in 2007, so it isnt like he rose from nothing. This yr, he is pitching like a #2 pitcher. And if you looked at the sox rotation with Wakefield on the DL, they could use any pitcher capable of throwing the ball over the plate and not seeing it get hit back at them at incredible velocities. Outside of Beckett and Lester, the 3-5 slot has been inconsistent, terrible, pick your adjective. Regardless, that is where you are losing games. Both with a meager offense and with awful pitching outside of your top 2 starters. This deal would fix almost every problem you have right now. So then, it becomes, what would you give up. Well, VMart and Lee are 30 and are FAs after 2010. I would assume the sox would be able to work something out with both of them to keep them in Boston through their primes, so it isnt like this would be a 1 yr rental. I would assume the haul would have to be great. Then again, it could also propel the sox past the yankees again into the best team in baseball realm. So you have to take that into account too. It would have to start with your best pitching prospect and your best hitter. Buchholz and Anderson would be the starting point and I would assume they would want Bard as well. I am sure you can bargain one of the three above out for a package of some guys lower. But it would hurt, a lot. Then again, settling your rotation into a 3 headed monster regardless of what Wake and DiceK do, and then getting a switch hitter with power who can catch and play 1b at a younger age is nice too. You gotta give a little to get a little. And if I were the sox, the time is now.

Garland gets hit at an alarming rate and has been doing so for awhile now. Arroyo has had the lower WHIP in a better hitter's division. That being said, neither of them are really pitching like studs. The one thing that really gets me interested in Arroyo also is the IP. Kid is durable. This will be his 5th consecutive yr throwing 200+IP.

First appearance with the Pirates A affiliate, he combined with Moreno to no hit the Charleston Riverdogs, the Yankees A affiliate

Its tough to run into the buzzsaw especially when you get Burnett, CC, and Joba

Buch and Bard would be the starting point

that would require a kings ransom

I would prefer Arroyo to Washburn. I know, I know, crazy. But, right now, we have a pretty solid 1-4. CC, Burnett, Pettitte and Joba are pitching well right now. But that 5 hole is a bit concerning with Mitre having 2 subpar starts. I think the biggest detraction of Mitre is not his production, but his depth. So therefore, it is all about what you are willing to give up and what you need. Washburn would still be in the #4-5 range in our rotation. Arroyo would be the #5. And while Washburn would be better through the end of the yr, neither would be starters in the playoffs. And Washburn would require actual prospects going the other way. So, unless the M's are willing to give us Washburn, I'll take the salary dump in Arroyo and see if being injected into a pennant race gets him back into a sub 5ERA form.

Burnett rolling again, 1 hit through 5, yankees up 3-0